Alicorn
by chocolate splash
Summary: Alicorn is a winged unicorn. It is powerful yet pure, and so is our Jocelyn Elaine Potter. Deaths of her godfathers being the last straw, she escapes from Dumbledore's manipulations and attends Amictos School for Magical beings. Watch her go through challenges and changes as she turns into a powerful entity. Fem!Harry, Creatures!Fic, Jocelyn*OC*OC*OC, no slash
1. Story till now

Hi everybody, welcome to my new fiction. I hope you have already read the original Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling, because she owns it and it is a very good series. It gives all the fanfiction writers lot of inspiration to write fictions based on it. I love Harry Potter, and many fanfictions that followed it. The story is inspired by many creature fictions I've read, where Harry is pretty powerful. They are awesome and I've decided to write one too, with my own twists. Please note that the cover picture isn't my own, I downloaded it from free Google images.

In this story we will have a very powerful FEMALE Harry, named Jocelyn Elaine Potter, paired with three magical creatures. Not a harem, but multi-pairing. Jocelyn attends a different school from her fourth year. The story will completely deviate from the original plot from end of third year. I might write a prequel later regarding her life till the third year later, I have so many details in mind, but I've just given a summary here. Note the little changes. They are mainly to signify that Jocelyn is wary of people, had no love since childhood, was abused and so keeps away the people from even touching her, has very few close friends, is very knowledgeable, has many interactions with Sirius and Remus in her third year, and is silent but self-sustaining. Please read and tell me how it is.

Story till now…

Jocelyn Elaine Potter lost her parents when she is a year old at Halloween. Albus Dumbledore placed her with her aunt, Petunia Dursley, with a note explaining that having Jocelyn with them would give them protection as well as money for child care. There is emotional as well as physical abuse at the Dursleys. Jocelyn was as often insulted around as beaten soundly for any unexplained incidents, any mistake and any complaints. She was supposed to do any work assigned to her within given time and with no excuses. She was even blamed and starved if she turned out better than her cousin, Dudley Dursley, in anything. Due to such treatment, Jocelyn turns out silent and self-dependent, and as a girl who internally wished for affection from anybody. The last emotion was what Dumbledore wanted in her, to keep Jocelyn under his directions when she entered the magical world.

In the first year, Jocelyn felt happy to have Ron Wesley and Hermione Granger as friends. She never let them come close to her, like a hug or a pat on back, due to her past. She was still wary of being near them, but had started to develop a feeling of safety with them. She was even proud of herself to have rescued a fellow student along with the philosopher's stone with her friends. What she did not know was that Dumbledore has intentionally placed the easiest barriers to the stone for Jocelyn, and had manipulated circumstances to make her go after the stone. As he expected, Jocelyn thought that showing bravery was rewarding, and it was essential to stop evil at any cost.

She was disappointed that her friends did not communicate with her in the summer holidays. She was again put to hard work by her relatives and all her school materials were locked in the cupboard. That was when Jocelyn started developing the skill of wandless magic. She accidentally spilled the sugar when cooking and was so scared that she willed the sugar back in the jar. When no missive from the Ministry of Magic came, she understood that doing wandless magic was not traced. Slowly but surely, she developed her ability over the holidays, surprised to find that once she understood and familiarized with the feel of magic, it was easier to do it without a wand. She did not know then, but she was born with the familiarity, the association, with magic that others do not have. This was a special gift. Thus went her first summer vacation.

She forgave her friends when she learned from the house-elf, Dobby, as to why they did not communicate. She was upset that they sent letter for 2 weeks and then stopped sending them when they got no reply. She consoled herself that anyone would do the same when they get no reply; that just because they were together for a year doesn't mean they were close friends. She hoped that she would develop better friendship with them the second year in school. But that hope was dashed early in the year when her parseltongue ability came out and she was labelled the 'heir of Slytherin'. The so-called friends distanced away from her and the whole school treated her like an outcast. It became worse when students got attacked. However much she pleaded others that she did not do it, it was to no avail. A few people believed her, and so her new circle of friends started forming. She was still mostly alone the whole year, so she strengthened her wandless magic ability without anyone knowing. At the end of the year, Hermione had cracked the puzzle of how the students were getting attacked – a basilisk running through the pipes and tunnels of the castle, and the entrance was in the abandoned girls' bathroom in the second floor. She told Ron. Since it happened fifty years ago too, they decided that Jocelyn was not the culprit. She was attacked herself later. When Ron's sister, Ginny, was abducted, Ron rushed to Jocelyn telling her that he believed that she was not to be blamed and pleaded her to save her sister.

Jocelyn went to the professors first and Lockhart, McGonagall and Snape agreed to come with Jocelyn and Ron. But McGonagall was trapped with Ron outside the chamber when Lockhart turned on them. She defended the group from Lockhart's spell, but in all the fight, the roof collapsed and Jocelyn and Snape barely managed to get on the other side. Inside the chamber, they faced the shadow of Tom Riddle who boasted that he controlled the basilisk through Ginny. In the fight with the said snake, Snape unintentionally looked into the reflection of her gaze and got petrified. Jocelyn killed the snake with the Gryffindor sword that Fawkes brought to her and killed the shadow with a basilisk fang. After Fawkes healed the snake bite on her arm, the phoenix transported them all out. Though she was blamed no more after explanations, people still did not trust her. She came to face Lucius Malfoy for the first time and freed Dobby from him by trickery. She set Dobby free as she did not want slaves, but by the rule of house-elf magic, Dobby belonged to Jocelyn. Dobby did not tell that to Jocelyn and went to work in the Hogwarts kitchens, to stay close to Jocelyn.

In the second summer, Jocelyn stayed in Leaky Cauldron with Sirius. Yes! Sirius did contact her and gave her explanations when she had walked out of her aunt's house after blowing up Marge Dursley. Sirius stayed with Jocelyn as her pet dog. This was the best summer Jocelyn ever had, with someone who loved her, no insults, beatings or starvation, and her own money to spend on whatever she wanted. In fact, she bought herself a highest quality multi compartment trunk which even had a mini home inside it. She bought books of all years and many more on the suggestion of her godfather. During the summer, she became more familiar with the goblins, learning their customs and respecting them for their skills. Many a few goblins in turn became friends with her. She came to know of her inheritance, her adult status when she turned thirteen because her parents had died and she was the only heir, and her being heir of Blacks as well. Sirius insisted that this was of his own free will, that she was best suited to carry Black legacy than anyone else. She also found that there were many withdrawals by many people in her name for various purposes, mainly by Dumbledore, Molly Weasley and a Kingsley Shacklebolt for ministry. She revoked all such rights, though she did not ask back the money already taken. There was still plenty left.

Now Sirius did tell her about Peter Pettigrew, the traitor and a rat animagus, but asked Jocelyn to leave his capture up to him, unless she directly came across him. Alas! Pettigrew found out about their hunt when he saw the black dog with Jocelyn, and he fled. Dementors were placed around Hogwarts to capture Sirius, who stayed around the school in order to catch the rat as well as to stay close to Jocelyn. Jocelyn was unable to tell anyone about Peter Pettigrew without giving Sirius' identity away. The whole school was distant from her anyway, except for her few friends who had stuck with her through everything. McGonagall and Dumbledore were shocked when they learned that she has been declared adult, both for different reasons. McGonagall was afraid for her, as no one would take charge of her anymore and stand as an adult for her if she was attacked by the students or Sirius Black. Dumbledore was upset with all the lost privileges with the Potter guardianship and power to direct Jocelyn. The third year's Defence professor was Remus Lupin, the werewolf, and her second godfather. Jocelyn grew quite close to him and Sirius. She went home with them during the Christmas break and no one was able to track her for some strange reason. This was her best Christmas ever.

Now our story starts with the end of third year, with Jocelyn spotting Peter Pettigrew and the whole chase that follows…..

 **Author's Note:**

 **The next chapter is actually an Appendix for the characters you will see in the story. The actual story starts from Chapter 3 onward.**


	2. Appendix

Hi everybody...

I have decided to create an appendix for all the characters and terms in the story, for there will be many new ones. This will be the second chapter for reference. I will add the characters in this list as they appear in the story.

Old readers, please excuse me for moving this now.

New readers, Introduction is the first chapter, the rest of the story follows here-forth. Enjoy yourself.

Please review if you want to say anything to me, be it as a chapter review or PM, for those reviews inspire and motivate me.

Males are indicated as (m) and females as (f).

* * *

Main character:

· Jocelyn Elaine Potter (f)

* * *

Imparatos in Amictos:

· Redwick Cresall (m) – elf; group leader for elves; fair, brown hair;  
\- teaches mind magic

· Randsey (m) – dracken; blue wings, blue eyes;  
\- teaches runes

· Randiel (f) – were-fox; brown hair and golden-red eyes;  
\- teaches potions

· Marshelt (m) – centaur; black ponytail; group leader for centaurs;  
\- teaches astronomy

· Soreign (f) – fairy; beautiful; golden hair, green eyes;  
\- teaches customs

· Pharust (m) – goblin;  
\- teaches politics

· Denstray (m) – elf; waist length black hair; black eyes;  
\- teaches magical defence

· Zeilo (f) – dracken; dark skinned; brown eyes; red hair; red wings;  
\- Hand-to-hand

· Xavier (m) – centaur;  
\- Archery

· Sawdust (m) – goblin;  
\- Weapon handling;

· Serio Lusean Grendall (m) – Headmaster; white wings; silver eyes; clawed feet and hands;  
\- teaches controlling magic

· Sophianna (f) – veela; very old; full control of veela power;  
\- Literature

· Lantiff (m) – dwarf;  
\- Music

* * *

Allievos at Amictos:

• Catherin Serin Do'Voglas (f) – elf; same year;

• Selina (f) - elf; same year

• Frian Rainders (m) – elf; same year

• Gresten (m) – elf; same year

• Yoko (m) – elf; same year

• Riana Oplandon (f) - fairy; same year

• Olivia Bristance (f) – fairy; same year; blue wings

• Lauda Dairalyn (f) – fairy; same year

• Sarahina Tornard (f) – dracken; same year

• Laila Gailard (f) – dracken; same year

• Zoriana Selpauce (f) – dracken; same year; friend

• Gutsneer (m) - goblin; same year

• Enderla Endwarder (f) - goblin; junior; friend

• Bark (m) - centaur; same year

• Driftwood (m) - centaur; same year

• Kinwer Mallsoe Sendrin (m) – dracken; prince; 1 year senior; green wings

• Illiana (f) - dracken; senior

• Atticus (m) - dracken; senior

*- Friends -*

• Nefira (f) - elf; same year; friend

• Saelig Zorian Seamase (m) – elf; same year; friend

• Alano Hasan Drestoir (m) - fairy; same year; friend; white wings; blue eyes

• Hothor Sharpclaws (m) - goblin; same year; friend

• Serine (f) - centaur; same year; friend

• Folana (f) - centaur; same year; friend

• Segrace Hiilgus Brinhat (m) – dracken; 1 year senior; black wings; friend

* * *

Friends at Hogwarts:

· Neville Longbottom (m)

· Daphne Greengrass (f)

· Luna Lovegod (f)

· Fred Weasley (m)

· George Weasley (m)

* * *

Comapanions :

· Dobby (m) – house elf

· Fawkes (m) – gold-red phoenix

· Hedwig (f) – owl initially, later transforms into snowy phoenix

* * *

Contacts at Gringotts:

· King Ragnok (m) – goblin; head of goblins at Gringotts

· Griphook (m) – goblin; Potter account manager, and a friend

· Priestess (f) – goblin; the respected motherly figure for goblins

· Smithwreck (m) – goblin; a guard goblin

* * *

People at Hogwarts:

· Albus Dumbledore (m) - Headmaster

· Hermione Granger (f) - friend in first year, grows distant from second

· Ronald Weasley (m) - friend in first year, grows distant from second

· Minerva McGonagall (f) - professor at Hogwarts

· Severus Snape (m) - professor at Hogwarts; hinted to be a death eater

· Lockhart (m) - professor, but a fraud one

* * *

Other Characters:

· Sirius Black (m) – godfather; Head of Black family, which he passed to Jocelyn

· Remus Lupin (m) – godfather; werewolf

· Ruferren Grinald Sebastum (m) - dracken; prince; not an Allievo

* * *

Terms:

· Imparato - teacher

· Allievo - student

· Osada - the students' residence

· Osakond - the teachers' residence and classes

· Okrag - dining area in Osada

· Cita - meeting area in Osadum

· Transito - a transportation patch for easier travel in Amictos

* * *

Spell List:

· Diffindo - Splits seams

· Expelliarmus - Disarms your opponent

· Stupefy - Knocks out opponent

· Protego - Cause spells to reflect back to the sender.

· Confringo - Explode Flames on target

· Densaugeo - Enlarges Teeth

· Engorgio - Enlarges an item

· Duro - Makes Objects Hard

· Erecto - Erects things

· Partum Nebula – created fog

· Portus – activates portkey


	3. Immeasurable Loss!

Jocelyn sighed in relief as she finished her last exam. Hope, which she had ignored till now, blossomed in her heart,

 _No more Dursleys. I get to live with Sirius and Remus and no one will know better. I will be free to do what I want to do. I just have to live through the next two days before holidays._

With that thought, Jocelyn walked outside the castle to her favourite spot, under the oak tree near the lake. She had spent many days here, studying, talking with Remus or Sirius over the enchanted mirror, thinking, crying, smiling over letters from her godfather… basically the tree had seen all emotions from her. The spot was also well hidden, so no one had ever come to bother her.

As she sat there, she heard a shout from Ron,

"Scabbers! There you are! At last, I found you. I was so scared you were eaten buddy, where did you run off to?"

Jocelyn peaked around the tree to find Ron standing just at a safe distance from the Whomping Willow, which was swaying dangerously. Her anger boiled when she saw that Peter Pettigrew was in his hands, trying to wriggle free. Jocelyn slowly got up and silently stalked towards the pair. Unfortunately, Wormtail saw her and bit Ron's fingers. At the loud yelp from Ron, he wriggled free and ran into the Whomping Willow to the cave underneath.

Foolishly, Ron followed. The tree suddenly became aggressive and swiped one of its branches hard towards Ron.

"Ron, Look out! The tree! Come your way!" Jocelyn shouted at her. Ron, startled at being shouted at by Jocelyn, walked away from her directly into the tree's strike. By the time he realized the warning, it was too late. The branch struck him in the middle and flung him into the air towards the forest. Panicked, Jocelyn willed her magic to catch him and laid him gently near Hagrid's hut. Then Jocelyn hurried into the cave under the tree, after pressing the relaxing knot of the tree.

She walked into a pretty happy scenario. Her godfather was there, walking around and taunting the rat in the cage lying nearby on a desk.

"So you thought you will live free after betraying someone who trusted you with their lives, didn't you Wormtail? Just wait now, I don't care if I am never freed, I want you to get justice for what you did."

"Sirius!" Jocelyn shouted at her godfather happily.

"Hey Jocelyn! I just came to keep Remus company today and look who I found." He came forward to hug Jocelyn in happiness, but stopped himself when Jocelyn took a step back in alarm.

"Sorry Sirius." Jocelyn hung her head, feeling ashamed.

"No worries pup. I will bring you out of that abuse this summer, just wait and see. Don't feel bad! It's their entire fault, never yours." Saying that, he lightly patted his goddaughter's back.

"Hey, is this a reunion that I am missing?" exclaimed Remus, happy to see his favourite people in the cave.

"I thought I would go through the transformation alone today, seeing how we are going to be together in two days anyway."

"Nah Moony! How can I leave you alone? And I even brought you a present." Sirius pointed towards the cage.

"Peter!" Growled Remus.

"Isn't that sweet? We get our goddaughter and Peter gets his justice. All will be as it should be. Just you wait!"

The moon emerged and Remus warned them to stay back. After his painful transformation, during which Sirius had turned into a dog, the two animagus jumped on Jocelyn who ducked them, laughing. They continued playing that way, looking at the rat from time to time to see if he was still there.

Meanwhile, Hagrid had discovered Ron unconscious near his hut, uninjured except for a bruise on his chest from the smack of the tree. He took him to the infirmary, where Dumbledore arrived soon. Ron was awake by then.

"What happened, Mr. Weasley?"

"I found my pet rat sir, but he bit me and scribbled away when he saw Jocelyn coming towards me."

"You mean the Potter girl is involved again?" In came the voice of Snape from the doorway. Ron just nodded, "I tried to follow him and forgot about the Whomping Willow for a moment. Jocelyn shouted at me to look out, but it was too late anyway. The last I remember is the tree smacking me into the air."

"Hmmm!" Dumbledore mused, "It seems your magic protected you from the fall, Mr. Weasley. Very strong it is, if that is the case. Well done. Please rest."

Ron agreed happily as Dumbledore turned and said quietly to Snape, "Go to the cave now and see what happened. If what I believe is true, we will find Mister Black there. Bring him to me."

Snape nodded and despite his fear of Werewolves, he went there. He found a student, Jocelyn Potter!, lying there between a black dog and a werewolf. Moony sensed his presence and lifted his head to look at him. He nudged his companions awake.

"Professor Snape! What are you doing here?"

"The better question would be what you are doing here." Sneered Snape.

Jocelyn shrugged, "Giving professor Lupin company. Why?"

"Your fool headedness is commendable, but…. Wait! Is that Mr. Weasley's rat?"

"Ah! He is a rat as well as animagus. Meet Mr. Peter Pettigrew, the rat who betrayed my parents to Voldemort."

At Snape's twitch Jocelyn rolled her eyes, but Snape ignored it. He cast the animagus revealing spell at the rat "What do you mean betrayed?"

"He was the secret keeper of my family, not Sirius Black. He is a death eater too, maybe in secret if you had not seen him in your service."

"Watch your tongue Mr. Potter or else..."

"Or else what? Leave it, listen to me. I know you were friends with my mother before you became a death eater, and you only help me in her memory. Just do one more thing in her memory. Please get justice for the rat, who is the actual person you loathing should be directed to, not a pleasant man who is also a wolf.

Snape, silenced from Jocelyn's speech, nodded once and stunned the rat. He opened the cage and reversed the transformation. Lifting him into the air, he left the cave, followed by its inhabitants. Just as he reached the entrance, he turned back in a doubt. Quickly he cast another animagus revealing spell at the dog and exclaimed in alarm, "Who are you?"

The dog transformed into Sirius Black, "Hi Severus, how are you?"

"Sirius Black!" Snape hissed, "Of all the idiotic things you could do, you decide to come to school."

He fired a spell at Sirius in anger, which Moony blocked. Since werewolves were naturally resistant to magic, it did no harm.

"Oh come on Severus, Jocelyn just explained that I am innocent. Stop this and hurry before the rat escapes or dementors come here."

As if it was their bad luck, they felt the chilling cold of despair creep up their spines.

"Shit!" Sirius exclaimed, while ushering Moony and Jocelyn back into the cave. "Oi moron! Snape! Come in here, quick!"

But Severus was frozen to ground, his many nightmares of past deeds flashing through his eyes. Uncountable dementors suddenly swarmed the sky overhead, and Sirius cursed as he transformed back and went into the cave. As Snape's magic weakened, his spell on Pettigrew broke and he woke up. He grabbed Snape's wand and stunned him in return. As the dementors came to him, he flashed his death eater mark to them and shouted, "I am serving our lord and helping him return. The ones you seek are in there. Capture and kill those three to your content."

The dementors, sensing a more powerful prey inside, glided into the cave. The previous inhabitants had already left through a tunnel inside which led them deep into the forest.

"Both of you need to leave, go go go!" Jocelyn pushed at Sirius and the werewolf. The werewolf shook his head as did Sirius.

"No Jocelyn, we won't leave you like this here."

"Then we will all die. I cannot run as fast as you and carrying me will only slow you down. The dementors are coming. I will hide somewhere and leave once they have passed. Don't waste time arguing. I want our summer to happen. Please!" she pleaded with all her might.

The adults sighed and nodded. The dog and wolf licked Jocelyn and went off. Jocelyn searched and found a bush with a small hollow underground and hid there. She could feel the dementors pass through, but none came for her. After a while, when she was thinking of leaving, she heard a loud cry.

She rushed through the forest and came along a shallow lake, which had moony and padfoot on the other side cornering a hurt Pettigrew. Peter seemed to have thrown hexes at them while they were running away, because both of them were limping. And then the dementors came. She could see the lake freeze and her breath smoke as they all converged onto the three. Jocelyn could not watch any longer and took out her wand and cast the patronus. After two failed attempts, a stag finally emerged and attacked the dementors surrounding the trio.

Remus and Sirius came to their senses and but Peter was quicker and he struck the werewolf with a silver knife. Moony howled in pain, and so did Peter when the black dog jumped on him. The dementors seemed to have some kinship with Peter, as they started evading the stag patronus and went for Sirius.

Jocelyn could not have that. She rushed to the spot and cast another one with all her might, thinking of the happiness she felt at the Christmas break. This time a wave of energy filled the area, powered by the patronus, and the dementors fled. She turned around to her godfather. He was lying next to Peter's torn head, blood all around his hands and face. She rushed to him and Remus who was lying next to him.

"Guys! Are you all right? Get up, we need to leave. Please don't die on me. You promised me a home. Please get up."

The sunlight started peeking in and Jocelyn watched in dismay as the bloodied form of Remus appeared before her.

"Take care Jocelyn. Live strong. Live free. Live for yourself. I love you kid."

"Don't talk like that Remus, there has to be a way to heal you. A mighty wolf won't fall from a tiny knife."

"hahaha" Sirius coughed and laughed, "No the werewolf doesn't just die from touching silver. That needs to enter their body and bloodstream. And it was a poisoned too. That rat had come prepared to kill us. I should have killed him as soon as I saw him. I'm sorry."

"Please, please, oh god!" Jocelyn cried hard, "Don't leave me. Not now. I just got you two."

"I'm sorry kiddo" Sirius coughed as his eyes went pale, "Take care and be happy."

Jocelyn bowed her head into the two pairs of hands clasped in hers. She felt the moment their grip went slack simultaneously. She cried and cried and cried. At all the loss she had to bear. At all the disgust she had to face. At the all love she craved but never got. At all the abuse she was subjected to. At all the loneliness she felt. She cried and could never stop. She cried into oblivion, falling unconscious in her tears.

The centaurs finally stepped forward. They had felt the despair flowing through the forest and reaching the stars, every being in the forest had. When they had arrived at the scene, they saw the binds on the human girl breaking and a tainted and cracked soul leaving the girl, unable to stand the love, sadness and magic. When the girl fell unconscious, the centaurs took her onto their shoulders and went to deliver her to the school.

Later that day, the aurors found the bodies of the two marauders and the traitor, and later the charges would be called off Sirius Black. But all that did not matter to Jocelyn. She did not want to attend any funeral; her spending their last breaths with them was enough. She did not want to publicize any feeling. Why should she?

Jocelyn was thinking and planning as she sat silent in the hospital wing with Hedwig on her lap. She needed to leave. All these expectations, abuse, indifference, awe, everything… she could not survive being just a tool and nothing else. She spoke to no one since she woke up, no one could come within a feet of her and no one could get through her mind to read it. Her magic was hidden to all, but was finally free of the binds placed on it and was running free. Her magic was protecting her from all physical, mental and emotional touch. It even healed the scar on her forehead, for it was no longer tainted by evil. She did not need it from them. Not when they were doing it for their own selfish reasons. She needed to leave.

That was the state that Jocelyn was in when she got into the train. She chose an empty compartment. Everyone knew where she was and gossiped about her, but no one dared to disturb her. When the train reached the King's Cross station, everyone in train and outside waited to see her one last time. No one saw her, since her compartment was empty. Jocelyn had already left.

* * *

 **Author's note:**

I posted you two chapters to start the story. Please tell me how it is.

This is a creature fiction, so the story will change from now on.

Coming up: Where Jocelyn goes to from the train and her experiences from there...


	4. Friends and Foes

Jocelyn's urgent need to leave before being bound in restrictions grew as the train neared its destination. Her magic was telling her that she had to leave and never reach the station, for she would be put under binds as soon as she got off the train. The necessity soon reached a painful peak, so she nodded to herself and just vanished from the train with her trunk and owl.

She apparated to the middle of a jungle. There were trees all around and she could sense no one around. She walked through the forest slowly and soon came to a meadow. On the other side of the meadow was all sky. She was on a valley near the top of a mountain which overlooked vast landscape full of greenery and a river flowing from the mountain. It was beautiful. Hedwig launched from her shoulder and flew around, tasting freedom. Jocelyn smiled. For all the loneliness she was in, the view filled her heart with peaceful silence. Jocelyn decided that she would need go nowhere from here. She could build a home here and live in isolation. And for now, she had a living space in her trunk and some food, settling her down for at least two weeks. She would survive and be in peace.

Peace was something that was not coming to Dumbledore. He was being questioned regarding the marauders by everybody, he was being judged by the fellow members of the order for overlooking a death eater among them, his pet phoenix was becoming unnaturally sick and unable to perform any of its usual magic, and he was being bombarded with owls, howlers and visits regarding Jocelyn Potter's disappearance.

It has been many days since Potter had disappeared from the train and no one has seen her since then. All the bindings, recordings and tracing he had cast on the girl have fallen and he had lost track of her. This has happened the night Sirius Black and Remus Lupin had died and Dumbledore could not respell them for the barrier that seemed to exist around her. He had assumed that her magic had created that barrier to cope with her loss and would not hold for long. He was confident that the spells would be renewed when the girl will step in her aunt's house, because of the blood wards and blood spells he cast with Jocelyn's own blood. But the girl had disappeared even before the train stopped!

And now he was at loss as to how to find her. No trace of her blood or magic remained and any attempts to find her failed. Where could she go? How to bring her back? Had the death eaters captured her? That could be a possibility; Riddle could be using her for his rejuvenation. In that case, she is in even more danger. It was not yet time for the sacrifice. Dumbledore knew from the beginning that Jocelyn was one of the Horcruxes of Voldemort. Riddle had unintentionally embedded a part of his soul in her, and until she dies, Voldemort cannot be killed. But her death would be weapon wasted if he does not have a body again. His sources have confirmed that Voldemort was on his way to gain one. He did not know how, but Jocelyn has to be under his control soon. Where is she?

Jocelyn Elaine Potter was happy. She was under the peace of nature, she had a room in her trunk when needed, she had Hedwig for company, she had books to utilize her time and learn, and best of all was the fact that she was free. Never had Jocelyn experienced such freedom to live how she wanted and to make her own choices. It has only been a week and she never wanted to leave this heaven.

This lasted two weeks before needs and trouble made their appearance. The needs were simple… she needed food for daily basis. Though she was skilled in cooking and gardening, no thanks to the Dursleys, she needed the seeds and the crop to grow before she could be self-sustained. Magic helped take care of the wastes and repairs, but clothes cannot be used for long before they are out-of-size or torn. Modifications and transfigurations were not permanent. So for now, she needed to go shopping for clothes, food and seeds. The trouble was something she could not figure out how to solve…. She felt suffocated of magic. She was not used to this much magic before, maybe it was the surroundings or being unbound, but unless she used a lot of magic, she was feeling suffused. The first few days went okay; she had to use magic constantly to set up her surroundings habitable. But now that the need was over, it was making her feel heavy and strained.

So, she went to the Diagon Alley after two weeks. Her first stop was at the Gringotts bank. Griphook recognized her even through her muggle disguise… a band-aid over her scar, a cap with her hair stuffed in it, wearing non-descript clothes…. And welcomed her.

"Greetings Jocelyn!" Griphook nodded to Jocelyn as soon as she entered the bank.

"Griphook!" She was surprised, "May your wit and grace never falter! How did you recognize me?"

"Shhh! Follow me and we can talk in my room. There are many ears around here and they may recognize you even under the silencing wards."

It was then she understood the ward cast around them both and thanked the goblin. Once in his room,

"Thank you for meeting me without a prompt, Griphook."

"You are welcome."

"I have three requests to ask of you today."

Griphook nodded.

"I want to withdraw a thousand galleons without anyone noticing me." Jocelyn knew that people might see her in a cart and recognize her.

Griphook called his guard inside, "Tell Smithwreck to bring 1000 galleons from the Potter vault." The goblin nodded and closed the door.

"Thank you. Second, I want to buy some books on growing plants for food. I need a list of books I have to buy to learn, as well as the seeds of the crop. Can you provide that to me?"

"I can do better, Jocelyn. I can provide them to you. Know that the purchase will be charged from your account."

"However much it may be, you may charge them. Ummm, for the third one, it is request for the cause and solution."

Griphook raised a thick eyebrow. Jocelyn sighed and explained her problem with magic. As she explained her symptoms, Griphook's surprise showed on his face. The moment she finished, he excused himself and left the room. He returned soon with two goblins, a priestess and King Ragnok himself. The moment Jocelyn saw them arriving, she kneeled to her feet and bowed her head. She knew she had to greet the priestess first and then the head.

"May your presence bring happiness to all stones and beings, priestess. May your enemies tremble and your people prosper, my king."

The priestess, who was like a mother to all goblins, their well wisher and soother, smiled fondly at Jocelyn in front of her, "Rise and be seated, child." The goblins took seats themselves. Ragnok liked this human. Though still a youngling, she had soaked like sponge all the formalities to be observed amongst goblins. He was wary when a few goblins had asked for permission to teach her those last summer, that the human might abuse or ridicule them; but now he was pleased to know that it was not so.

"Tell us Lady Potter," he said, "We want to hear the trouble you have ourselves before we say anything."

Jocelyn did that, she told them of all her suffocation and heaviness. She felt humbled that such high stature goblins would feel her worthy of their attention. The priestess then came to her and held her hands, "Child! Would you consent for me to look at your magic?"

At Jocelyn's agreement, she closed her eyes and chanted something in her language. It took a few minutes before she opened her eyes. It was a surprise to see those eyes shocked.

"Oh Child! What have they put you through! Why is your blood imbibed with basilisk venom as well as phoenix tears?"

"I was bitten by a basilisk." She murmured.

"You WHAT!?" was the cry from all three goblins, which startled Jocelyn.

"OH! But Fawkes, Dumbledore's phoenix healed me with her tears."

The priestess nodded in understanding, but King Ragnok had a gleam in his eyes, "Tell me Lady Potter, how big was this basilisk?"

"About 50 feet long. Please, haven't the blood and tears cancelled each other?"

"They have cancelled the effects, not the fluids themselves. I fear you will always have them in your system, but fear not. It is beneficial, because once you look past their major effects, they have many other minor benefits. Now, could you take us to harvest this creature? As you have slain it, it is your property and we would pay you in right amount for the supplies we get."

"I do not want to go to the castle, never again!"

"Don't fret Lady Potter, just give us the directions and we will be discrete in our harvest."

"But you need parseltongue to open it."

"Then record it for us in one of our pensive and we will proceed without you. Now for the more important matter, you energy."

Jocelyn sat up in attention to the priestess.

"Child, every being has a store of magical energy. Suppressing it, like yours was done, is never beneficial because one won't be able to perform magic with ease, and he or she will not get used to it. That is your first trouble; you are not used to having so much energy to access. That would have been easy to solve with little training, if your magical core was not so big. To control it, you would need expert guidance."

"Who can do that? Please don't name Dumbledore."

The priestess frowned at the name, "Even his core is not as big as yours child, nor he that well trained to be able to teach you to perfection. No, I am speaking about Grendall, the headmaster of the Amictos School for Magical Beings."

"Oh! Never heard of him."

"Of course you didn't. Just like humans have schools, other beings do too. Amictos School takes in beings of all races, be it human, vela, goblin, centaurs, drackens, dwarves… any being and they train them in their skills. Only, no human has joined that school for such a long time."

"Why? Don't they accept humans?"

"They do, but humans have slowly isolated themselves from that school, to the point that they have forgotten about its existence. But this school has its own criteria for admission, one which I do not have the liberty to tell you."

"Oh!" this was disappointment from Jocelyn.

"But" the priestess continued, "We can give you a letter to mail to them, telling the headmaster of your situation. Whether he joins you or not, I am sure he will at least help you with your situation."

"Oh thank you. I will be in your debt if you could provide me a means to the solution. I am most grateful."

The priestess smiled and then she and the King together wrote the letter. Once they had the details of how to access the basilisk, they bid Jocelyn farewell. Jocelyn felt light hearted as she left Gringotts with the letter, books and seeds. But that did not last long.

As she was almost finishing her shopping, someone from the crowd recognized her. It was Neville Longbottom in the pet store. He immediately clutched Jocelyn by her arm and dragged her into a corner.

"Joy, is that you?"

"Neville! How are you? Is my disguise not enough to evade recognition?"

"Your identity is well hidden Joy, but not your mannerisms and voice. Your disappearance has caused a lot of search partied roaming around. They check on anyone with suspicion."

"Does everybody know I have disappeared?" Jocelyn panicked.

"No, and that's the issue. If you are found, even the ones that like you would not think of helping you because they don't know they have to."

"Oh come on, who would like to help an arrogant liar?"

Neville's face softened and he hung his head, "That's why you left, isn't it? You think you have no friends here. I am sorry I couldn't help you through all that."

Jocelyn placed a palm on his cheek, "I do consider you my friend, and also Fred and George, Daphne and Luna. It's not your fault that the rest of the school prefers to blame and isolate me, even with my proof of innocence. And I could not live in that environment any longer; a few drops of honey don't contest much in a pool of bitterness."

"I understand Joy, and I support you. And so do others. That's why I am not arguing with you going away. Just don't forget us… me. You were my first friend in life who always encouraged and never expected any return."

"Same as you. Friendships never seek returns Neville. I will keep in contact once I figure out how."

"Very well, I will inform the others. I will not ask you where you are staying. Tell me what you are purchasing and I will get it for you."

After a few minutes a waiting in the dark corner, Neville returned with the purchases.

"Here you go."

"Thank you Neville. Here, I was thinking of posting it, but this way is better. Give this money to Fred and George. I want them to live their dream and they won the bet anyway."

"Is this for their Joke Shop?"

"But of course!"

Neville just shook his head, "They will be ecstatic. Now leave and be safe. Do contact if you find a safe way, else we will meet when we meet." Neville smiled at her.

"Take care Neville and tell others the same too." She hugged her friend and left the shop quietly.

Neville followed her after a few moments and came face to face with a fight. People were running away from spells. But they were not leaving; they were watching the fight from a distance and occasionally firing their own spells. There were Daphne, Jocelyn and Luna under fire from all directions. Jocelyn has been spotted and cornered!

Neville did not think twice before joining them. Most of the spells were stunners and disarming spells from all sides, but a few serious spells were included too. The girls were handing them all well, thanks to Jocelyn teaching them last two years.

"Nice to see you Neville. Diffindo! Hope you are doing well."

"Pleasantries? Now Luna? Expelliarmus! Stupefy! Look out, that way. Protego!"

"Well no time like the present." Daphne Greengrass shouted, "Confringo! Avis! You cannot be only one to meet her right? Densaugeo!"

"Ugh!" Jocelyn exclaimed, "I hate these anti-apparition, Diffindo!, wards. All of you leave. Please! You will only get into trouble."

"And leave you alone? Never. Friends stick together, right? Engorgio! Duro! Expelliarmus! God, where are the twins? They are missing out the fun."

Suddenly, two people jumped amongst them. The twins had arrived, "You call and we arrive, Oh great one! Hey Joy, how are you doing?"

"Stupid stupid, Stupefy! Stupefy! Stupefy!, Stupid all of you."

"Oh let us have fun too. Now Gred, lets teach them how to do it."

"Right you are Forge!"

"Erecto! Erecto! Erecto! Erecto! Erecto!"

The twins cornered the group into a wall and erected three walls between them and the casters. The others got the point and worked to defend themselves and the twins as they started waving their wands to create wards, one to create a pocket of space for apparition and another to create a portkey. Once done, they shouted together,

"Hold the rope! Partum nebula! Portus!"

The first spell created a fog around them and they portkeyed away. But in the gap, three aurors had jumped on the group and portkeyed away with them. Thus when the group landed in the edge of forbidden forest, the kids were caught in surprise when the spells kept firing. The aurors were desperate and they started casting more dangerous curses. Due to surprise and close quarters, the defence was not so solid and so, one high powered Diffindo! curse and Sectumsempra! curse passed through their shield to Jocelyn.

Hedwig was flying around Hogsmeade. Jocelyn had promised her that she would collect her after her shopping and asked her to remain here as she was easy to identify. She felt it when Jocelyn apparated near the forest and that her beloved human was in danger. She reached them just in time and dived in front of the two curses heading towards Jocelyn. On a human, those curses were very much injuring. On an owl, they were fatal.

Jocelyn screamed when she saw Hedwig defend her and drop down on the ground. Immense rage flooded out of her with a force that it threw away the three aurors. Before anyone else could come, she carefully took Hedwig in her arms and shouted to others.

"Touch me. Now!"

They all did so immediately and then they vanished.

* * *

 **Author's Note :**

This is the list of spells used... (Except the last two - I do not remember where I got them from)

Diffindo - Splits seams

Expelliarmus - Disarms your opponent

Stupefy - Knocks out opponent

Protego - Cause spells to reflect back to the sender.

Confringo - Explode Flames on target

Densaugeo - Enlarges Teeth

Engorgio - Enlarges an item

Duro - Makes Objects Hard

Erecto - Erects things

Partum Nebula – created fog

Portus – activates portkey

So, please review and tell me what you think of the events.

Coming up:

Saving Hedwig


	5. Saving Hedwig

The six friends and the owl popped into Jocelyn's meadow where she was residing. It was a beautiful day there, but no one paid any attention to the surroundings. All their eyes were focused on the small bird in Jocelyn's arms. Hedwig was gently laid down by the crying girl; the bird was still twitching violently and flapping her wings in pain. Her eyes were wide and she seemed to be on her last breaths.

"No no no. Not you too. Don't leave me Hedwig! Please, god! Don't leave me." Jocelyn wailed. The others were sad too, for any healing charms they knew of did not help the owl. They watched a sad Jocelyn and pained Hedwig, helpless to do anything.

"Don't leave me. Please Hedwig. I need you. Please! Anybody, please help. Just save Hedwig, I will do anything."

There was a pop in front of them. To their surprise, it was Dobby, the house elf Jocelyn had freed a year ago.

"Mistress called, Dobby has arrived." Then he was shocked too, "Oh no! Mistress' owl is dying."

"Don't say that, Dobby, don't. Please see if you can heal her."

Dobby nodded and extended his hands forward. A ray of magic extended from him to Hedwig, but it faded and showed no improvement.

"Dobby is sorry, but the evil hexes had no-healing charm added. Dobby cannot heal her."

"Then tell me who can!" Jocelyn shouted at him.

"The dear snowy owl is very injured. Only powerful healer can heal her."

Jocelyn suddenly remembered her second year, where Fawkes had healed her from Basilisk's venom.

"Fawkes! Please, if you can hear me, help Hedwig. Fawkes, please help!"

Dumbledore was sitting in his office contemplating finding and then losing Jocelyn Potter. If they could find her once, they could find her again. A lot of blood was split in the fight in Diagon Alley. The aurors had separated the blood samples and provided it to him too. Now, he was waiting for the potion, which tracks them through blood, to complete. He looked at the dull phoenix at his perch again, sighing, "Are you sure you cannot track her now, Fawkes? We need Jocelyn bound and under my control again."

Fawkes, the majestic phoenix, was unhappy. Phoenix is a being created out of magic and pure sacrifice. They are not born but created by another phoenix if they find them worthy and have enough power at their disposal for the transformation. They are essentially free; no one can bind them and they may chose to side with the good side if they wish to. Fawkes did the same; she decided to stay with Albus Dumbledore when he was leading the fight against Grindelward. At that time, he helped Albus fight the enemy who tortured children and innocents for selfish gains and slavery. Fawkes was completely against that and was happy to assist. But he had watched as the power and might slowly corrupted Albus. The one who fought against slavery was now corrupt enough to think he needed to enslave a child and sacrifice her. Even if Albus' interpretation of the prophecy was true, he should have cared for the savior and given her love along with training to survive. Instead, he forced her into the worst environment. Fawkes did not agree with Albus anymore, but was even more disgusted with his actions towards Jocelyn the last three years. So he refused to help in Jocelyn's case anymore and was contemplating leaving the headmaster's side. Today was the last straw.

"Oh please Fawkes! You could find people in the strongest wards before. What happened now? Are you getting weaker?"

Fawkes turned his head aside and refused to answer.

"Look, if you can find Jocelyn, I will even guide some of her power to you. You will be stronger than ever."

This angered Fawkes and he trilled angrily. It was cruel, to remove someone's magic.

"Your continuous lack of response is suspicious, Fawkes. Are you deliberately refusing to help me? She is needed to fulfill the prophecy. Once she dies, I, the most powerful wizard, will kill Voldemort and then use Jocelyn's inheritance to rebuild the magical world. Help us Fawkes, and you will be treasured by all too."

This did it. Fawkes decided he would no longer stay with this human. As if firming his decision, he heard a desperate plea from Jocelyn for help. He gave Dumbledore one last angry glare and burned out of his office. Dumbledore felt happy that Fawkes decided to help him, which would turn into anger and frustration later when his 'pet' does not return, however much he summoned him.

Fawkes appeared near Hedwig and looked at Jocelyn.

"Fawkes! Thank god! Please heal Hedwig."

Fawkes analyzed the owl and shook her head in dismay with a sad trill. Though the humans could not understand her, the house elf could.

"The phoenix cannot heal the owl completely. Tears close the wounds, but snowy owl not heal fully. She be in pain forever. Phoenix asks does Mistress Jocelyn wants painfilled companion?"

Jocelyn heart constricted when she heard that. She looked down at her dying friend, whose eyes were dropping slowly.

"Is there no other way? Anything, even with slightest of chances?"

The phoenix trilled again which Dobby translated, "Phoenix Fawkes says Snowy owl sacrificed, so snowy owl worthy. But he needs lots powers."

"Anything! Tell me how; I will give all my magic if need be."

"You cannot do that Joy! You will die." Daphne exclaimed, terrified.

"Anything for Hedwig." Joy resolved.

"And what are we? Roasted ducks?" exclaimed one of the twins.

"Yeah?" started the other, "we may not be as powerful as you but we can too…"

Fawkes interrupted him, trilling urgently. Dobby hurried them, "No time to waste. Mistress Jocelyn, you need trust phoenix. He bind you to him."

Jocelyn nodded and Fawkes, standing besides Hedwig, looked into her eyes. A connection formed between them and then magic started ebbing out of Jocelyn and into Hedwig, obscuring her in a soft glow. Her friends watched with tension. Luna turned to Dobby to distract herself.

"What is happening, Dobby?"

Dobby answered, his wide eyes never wavering from the transfer, "Phoenixes not born, not die. They created by other phoenixes, if they have good heart, by lots of magic and after very pure sacrifice. Snowy owl worthy and mistress gives power. So Fawkes working."

"You mean Hedwig will turn into a phoenix?"

"A phoenix Hedwig, yes."

Neville was worried, "And it is costing Joy too much." Jocelyn was getting drowsy and in another couple of minutes, she fainted. Fawkes continued hesitantly with a sad trill. Daphne spoke out then.

"Fawkes, please stop. She will die. Please take our magic if you can."

"Yes" Neville agreed. "I am willing."

"Me too." The remaining three said simultaneously.

Fawkes gave a happy trill and looked at them in the eyes. Soon, they started feeling drain on their magic too. But apparently, Jocelyn's magic had fulfilled larger part of the need, for Fawkes soon stopped. They all looked down at Hedwig, to find ashes there, and a small snowy chick of a phoenix popping its head out of them.

"Awwww!" Luna cooed at her and took her into her arms. But Hedwig struggled to go to Jocelyn, so Luna placed the baby near Jocelyn. The baby snuggled into her neck and slept.

That settled, the five friends looked at Fawkes who was perched on a tree combing his feathers. And Dobby was there too, looking at them with wide happy eyes.

"Dobby is thankful for his mistress. Mistress' friends very good friends."

"Thank you Dobby." Neville said, sitting by him on the grass. He looked around, "Pretty brilliant place Joy found here. It is so peaceful."

"Trust Joy to escape to heaven." The twins chorused as they plopped on either side.

Daphne and Luna joined them too.

"Now please explain us the situation with Joy, Dobby; whatever you can understand?"

"Dobby understand lots, Miss Daphne. Mistress Jocelyn unhappy with the humans, so she escapes here."

"But how did she find this place?"

"Her magic bring her. Then she go shopping today and humans find her. You all fight, snow owl hurt, and she bring you all here. She calls for help and phoenix comes and make snow owl to snow baby phoenix."

"Okay" Fred drawled, "But why did you come?"

"I belong to Mistress, she calls I come."

"How? And why did other elves did not come? In fact, if you can find her, then they could have used any elf to find her, don't they?" George said.

"No no no, only Dobby belong to Mistress as she freed him from bad bad Malfoys. Only I can find her and only when she calls first. Now I know, I can come on my own."

"I will have to ask her that story later. Okay, then why did Fawkes come? Sorry Fawkes, but weren't you bound to Headmaster? And you don't need invitation to come to her, do you?"

"No again mister Neville, Phoenixes always free, none can bind them. In fact, you all now bound to Fawkes, you had to be to help the snow owl. And Dumbledore never bound. He does not like to be bound. Fawkes likes mistress so does not find her on headmaster's orders. But he come when mistress calls. He now stay here, not go back. He does not want to."

"What does our being bound to phoenix entail?" It was Daphne again.

"Not much. But phoenix be your supervisor. If you do spells for bad, he can stop you from doing magic. He also can give or take magic when needed."

"Oh a phoenix guardian!" "Cool!"

"Now how do we-" "go back? And when will -" "Joy wake?"

Fawkes trilled and Dobby conveyed, "Phoenix Fawkes can take you home. But I magic your minds first. For safety."

"What safety?"

"Older humans read minds and ask questions. You say you don't remember. I will hide this meeting."

"You mean you will erase our memories?"

"No no, no erase, I hide, you lie that it is erased."

The twins burst out laughing, "I will stick to Joy if this is the type of situations we end up in. So you say that you will hide our memories but we will still remember it? And we need to lie to everyone that our memory has been erased. From when will be the hiding?"

"From when Mistress Joy apparated you all. She stunned you, dumped you, and left. Fawkes will take you outside Weasley house. I and Fawkes take care of mistress and baby snow phoenix."

"What if I want to visit again?"

"You be careful and alone and call Dobby or Fawkes. We take you here. I hide all meetings."

"That's a good plan." Neville nodded. "Thank you Dobby. Thank you, Fawkes. We will leave now. Take care of them and tell Joy that we will always support her."

"Okies. You all take care, and promise not tell anyone else without mistress permission."

They all agreed and left with Fawkes after memory modification. Dobby settled Jocelyn and Hedwig comfortably with conjured bed and blankets and went happily in search for food and other necessities.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So what do you think? Please Review.

The review from **dragonladysally** had sparked me into ranting to her. This is what I feel.

Part of her review:

Now onto my feelings about Dumbledore and the phoenix. I have always thought it was strange that Fawks would stay with Dumbledore given his track record in the books on how he used people like chess pieces. I mean come on first year, we got the stone, mirror, and each trap was designed for people with knowledge/skill to get by. second year, the trouble with the chamber of secrets; I mean come on call the Auros. you get the point that I am making here, Dumbledore may not be going Dark, but he is in heavy gray area that ... (Lost my train of thought) but you get what I mean hopefully.

My feelings:

Dumbledore is a 'confusion' in the book. For all the power they say he has, never did he show it throughout the book. Not with the students, not with the ministry and definitely not with the school. Come on, he is the headmaster, he has some authority. He should have punished or at least scolded students when necessary, should have prevented dementors, should have not left the school just because the minister said so, should have appeared with Fawkes in the chamber... I could just go on. On the other hand, if he has no rights, how could he bring a stone into the castle, announce it so and not have any reprimands from anyone; how could he hire idiots like Lockhart and not have any complaints; how could he hire a werewolf and not give him money for even decent clothes... there are lots of these. And I am pointing out only the first three years. So I've decided to make him 'just' a headmaster, because he is definitely in a 'grey area' in personality; where he cares more about his goals than his responsibilities.

The thoughts I have in a prequel to this story highlights and moves away from all these points. But since I am more interested in the romance, friendship and action part right now, that will have to wait. Happy reading!

Coming up: convincing Jocelyn to go to new school. The plot completely migrated from here, though a bookish plot happens in the background.


	6. Convincing

Day 1 passed.

Day 2 passed.

Day 3 passed.

It was on day 4 that Jocelyn showed some movement. It was mostly twitching with occasional call for water. While dobby carefully fed her a glass of water and damped a wet cloth over her forehead, Hedwig and Fawkes watched from the sidelines, singing a calming song for her when they found her agitated.

It was on the fifth day when she finally opened her eyes. It was also when her convulsions started. She tried to move, she really did, but painful spasms would strike her at most inopportune moments and their frequency only increased. By next morning, she was crying in heaviness and pain. She could not take it anymore. She drifted in and out of consciousness. Any effort by the phoenixes and house-elf were of no use. Hedwig finally had enough. She dove for Jocelyn's shopping bag and urgently rummaged around for some solution that Jocelyn might have found during her trip. It was one of the reasons she went there for. With Dobby's help, they finally uncovered the letter to the Headmaster Grendall. She immediately concentrated on his location and flashed away.

Amictos School of Magic was in a beautiful valley surrounded by mountains, on an isolated island. There was a forest within the enclosure and also a mighty river flowing from one of the mountain and bisecting the valley in the middle. The School was built of stones on one side of the river and similarly, student dorms were built of stones and trees on the other side. There were even caves built on that side into the mountain to facilitate those who wanted them. It was all completely natural. The school was made of various small stone buildings scattered on its end, along with houses for the teachers, or Imparatos, as they were called. They did not interfere with the housing system of the students, whom they called Allievos, unless necessary.

Headmaster Grendall was having a peaceful summer in his home in the school grounds when he saw a flash of fire. He was astounded to find a phoenix there in his room. What left him in awe was that it was snowy white in colour. Apparently, this creature had refused to shed its colours when it was transformed. That was interesting. Before he could ponder over it more, the phoenix dropped a paper… letter? In front of him and looked at him urgently. His eyes widened as he read the letter and looked up in surprise at the phoenix.

"Is she in trouble now?"

The phoenix nodded and pulled on his sleeve to follow her.

"Will you take me to her, now?"

The phoenix nodded and pulled more urgently.

"Could you wait for a moment as I collect others to visit her?"

This was the wrong thing to say as the phoenix let out an angry trill and widened her wings in threat.

"Okay okay. Let us go now."

And before he could unfold his wings, the phoenix jumped on his shoulder and flashed away with him. They arrived in a meadow on a mountain beside a struggling, screaming girl. He unfolded his white feathery wings as he knelt beside her, which extended at least a few meters on either side. He wrapped them around the girl enclosing both of them in its cocoon.

"Shh! Jocelyn, I am here. Your magic is reaching a bursting point. You need to release it, now."

"Can't…. hurts…. Will destroy."

"I have enclosed you in my embrace, Jocelyn. Your magic will not escape my confines. Let it go or it will only grow more painful."

Jocelyn could not hold it longer anyway, so the magic burst out of her. But surprisingly, none could escape beyond the guard around her. Finally when she was spent, she opened her eyes slightly.

"Angel!" she murmured before fainting. Headmaster Grendall looked at her fondly before taking out a locket from his pocket. He gave it to Dobby.

"Place it around her neck after an hour when her magic has replenished some. This will dissipate any excess magic from her slowly to the surroundings. This will not let her overload herself. Call me when she is awake. I need to talk to her."

He unfurled his feathers and took flight, vanishing mid-air. It took another day before Jocelyn woke up, to find her friends waiting for her. She felt happy for their company. After some greetings and refreshments, they sat down to chat.

"So tell me Joy, what is the issue?"

"I don't exactly understand it myself, but what the goblins said was that due to the bindings on my magic, I am not used to having it in full power and don't know how to control it. By the way, thank you Hedwig for your quick thought. And you are beautiful, you know, more than ever."

Hedwig ruffled her feathers in delight and pulled a few of her locks in appreciation. Fawkes, who was on Luna's shoulder, flapped his wings too, wanting attention. Everyone laughed at his antics.

"Yes Fawkes, I haven't forgotten. Thank you so much. You gave me my Hedwig, you are giving me your company, and I hope you will continue guiding me when I am lost. From the depth of my heart I say, you are the most magnificent and kind being I have ever met."

Fawkes seemed satisfied with it and nodded his head. Neville spoke up the hard question.

"So you are not coming back to Hogwarts, are you?"

Jocelyn shook his head, "I'm sorry. I don't think I can survive my sanity anymore if I go back."

Fred tried to pipe up some joy, "Oh don't fret Nev! She will be going to a full magical creatures' school."

George caught up, "Yak who knows, she might end up with a strong magical creature as her husband. You know Joy, I might have hit on you if you had come back this year. You are getting all grown up."

"So beautiful..."

"So powerful…"

"So kind…"

"So brave…"

"So friendly…"

"So fashionable…" The twins suddenly stopped and looked at her attire. She was wearing a grey t-shirt and her pyjamas.

"Naah!…" they both shook their heads as everyone laughed.

"Oh shut up you two…" Daphne pointed her finger at the twins and then looked at Jocelyn, "Seriously Joy, we will miss you. You are the bind that brought together this group of friends. Even if you are not there, you still will be in our hearts."

Jocelyn hugged herself, sobbing. She so wanted to hug her friends, but was unable to.

Fred grinned, "And of course, we have our two phoenixes."

George continued, "We are personally bonded to one of them."

Both of them turned to the two birds and started alternating,

"Oh Fawkes…"

"And Hedwig..."

"You two are the cleverest…"

"The prettiest…"

"The smartest…"

"The kindest…"

"The sneakiest…"

"The bravest…"

"And the most fun-loving in the whole wide world. Please help us..."

"Sneak up on people and prank them in best way possible."

"PLEASE!" both of them chorused.

Everyone slapped their foreheads in unison as the birds preened in their admiration. The twins and their antics!

"And of course, for talking to Joy too." They added offhandedly.

Jocelyn started giggling and then burst out laughing. Soon everyone followed.

"So you will not be with us but you will go to a school full of magical creatures, huh?" Luna taunted her playfully, "I bet that you would meet your soul mate there."

"Oh come on, do we have to do this again?" Jocelyn raised her hands as everybody smiled.

"We'll see Joy, we'll see. My predictions have always come true till now. By the way, where is your wand?"

"Oh that?" she was embarrassed now, "Ummmm… I kind of threw it at the aurors when they hit Hedwig."

"You…?"

"Threw it….?"

This one time, the twins' synchrony was not intended. They both were really baffled!

"So how will you do magic now? You don't yet know wandless magic that fluently." Neville asked her.

"Wait a minute… you actually can do magic without a wand?" Daphne was surprised, and then she frowned and turned to Neville, "How come you know and we don't? And why did you not tell us till now?"

"I watched carefully." Neville backtracked, "and I spent more time with her than you. That's all. I thought you observed too, and were just keeping it silent like me."

Jocelyn interrupted to save Neville from Daphne's wrath; she really did feel insulted if someone did something obvious which she missed. "It's okay anyway. I guess it would be with the ministry now. The goblins did say that wands were not allowed in Amictos, so I guess I still have time to get a new one. I am staying put for once."

"When is your new headmaster arriving?"

"I sent him a letter through Fawkes this morning, but he sent no reply. And for your kind information, he is a headmaster, but not mine. Your prediction will not come true, because I am not going to school again. Hmm, that sounds good; maybe I will become a hermit."

"Will you be happy then, Jocelyn?" A new voice spoke behind her. Everyone looked up at the new arrival. He was tall man with waist-length long white hair, elegant yet powerful physique, and a warm smile. But what separated him from humans were his long white wings on his back, and his palms and feet which were actually like claws. Power radiated off him, but no one was afraid.

"Headmaster Grendall?" Jocelyn asked as she got on her feet.

The man nodded.

Jocelyn bowed to him, "Thank you for helping me sir. I don't know what would have happened otherwise."

Grendall smiled and nodded, "I am happy to be of help. May I join you?"

She looked at her friends. They just shrugged and made place for him in their circle. The headmaster joined them.

"So you did not answer my question, would you be happy being alone?"

Jocelyn shrugged and looked away, "Well not being alone has done me no good till now."

"I can understand how you feel, but if you really had qualms about company, you would never have invited your friends to you new place."

"Them, I like, but not everyone. I am a freak of nature."

Grendall noticed the sadness and anger on her friends' faces. "Ah! Nobody liked everyone except god, and even him only to a certain limit. That is not abnormal. But isolating yourself is not the solution."

"Then what do you expect me to do?" Jocelyn fired at him, "Keep walking as everyone gives a punch from the side? Keep working for them even if they throw barbs and insults at me? What do you want me to be? A slave?"

"Retreat, regroup, stabilize, energize and finally fight back. That's what any fighter does when in danger. You did the retreat part, connecting with friends is the start of the regroup part. If you stop here now, then the ones that have attacked you till now will gain the upper hand again and you will be back to square one."

"I am not a fighter; I do not want to be."

"Jocelyn!" Grendall said caringly, "Every living being, from the great dragon to a small fly is a fighter. Everyone fights to survive and live. So do I. So do your friends. And so do you. It's just that your fights are a bit difficult than for the rest of your kind."

Daphne then spoke up for the first time, "He is right Joy. You do need to keep learning, if not to fight anyone, then at least to keep yourself safe. And we all know how surprising and adventurous your life is, even if you don't want it to be. You will make new friends. You will learn a lot. You will…"

Jocelyn looked at her friends, "I don't want any more friends. I have you. Are you saying that you won't remember me anymore?"

"Not quite possible, definitely not with the twins here." The said twins chuckled. "Joy, making new friends does not mean losing old ones, just adding new people to the collection. And we won't forget you, nor will let you think so with all the communication we would be doing. Having a phoenix as a messenger is a great benefit, isn't it Hedwig and Fawkes? They would kidnap us for sure if they think that you need us. And you have the sneaky house-elves for that too."

Jocelyn had tears brimming in her eyes as she looked at all her friends. This was not their last visit. They would still stick with her through all odds. As improbable as it seemed, she felt her hope rise. She nodded.

"I will miss you." She sniffed. The others nodded. Grendall watched all this silently, appreciating the bond these humans had with each other. All beings were the same; they all needed food, water and company at the foremost.

"Okay then, I think you should leave now." He said. "I am sure Jocelyn would write everything back to you, but it is getting late and from Jocelyn's letter, I assume that this isn't a visit known to your parents. I will need to discuss some arrangements with Jocelyn."

The friends nodded and after some parting words to each other, Dobby transported them back to their houses. Later, Grendall left too after explaining about her new school, her timings, when she had to meet him, and the general schedule of the school. One suggestion he gave her was to learn warding, as she will be a target for quite some time before Amictos got used to her. He told her to practice powering them after removing her chain with the locket that he gave her. It was to act only as a limit to her power when not in use, not a constraint to her magic. As Jocelyn slept that night, she thought about how her life has changed and how it will continue to.

* * *

 **Author's Note:  
**

She is finally convinced to continue her life. Phew! What do you think? Please review!

You might have noticed, and even got frustrated, when I keep re-posting some chapters. Please bear with me, it is still a work in progress; and while I will not change the plot, I sure will need to edit some mistakes or respond to some reviews. Keep up with me, please?

Coming up: Description of Amictos school of Magic.


	7. Amictos school of magic

'Amictos School of Magic is completely different' was the first thought that Jocelyn had when she landed in the school grounds through the portkey given by the headmaster. She landed on one of the bridges across a wide river that separated the two halves of the school. Behind her was the plane where classes were held and which housed the teachers, the Imparatos. And in front of her was the plane which was the residence for the students, the Allievos. But she could not see either of the planes for the dense line of tree that stood on either side of the river.

She shrugged to herself and went ahead through the trees on to the students' residence, which was also called Osada. The other side of the river was called Osakond. The moment she cleared the trees, her eyes widened in astonishment. In front of her was a vast plane; she could see various cottages to some distance. There was a huge mountain on the back and surrounding the plane. The plane itself was beautiful and green, with trees and plants scattered around. She could also see numerous small cottages all through the plane and they were not ordered. Each cottage had a different style; one looked like a hut with a garden in front of it, one had two stories with trees all around, one was like a small country house with a wooden seating to in front of it, one was very wide and with three stories, and so on; all built of stone. The headmaster had said that there was large clearing in the middle, called Okrag, where the Allievos gathered for dining and for get-togethers. Usually functions and festivals too were celebrated there. This clearing was marked by stones surrounding it and cottages were not allowed there.

There was a strange system in Osada; you are responsible for your own residence. You have to build and protect your own cottage, though its dimensions were limited. Every cottage was built on roughly the same area, but of different structures and with different styles; they conveyed the nature and preferences of the residents. Also, another fact in Osada was that there was no necessary number of inhabitants for any cottage. A single cottage could have a single resident or a whole family or a circle of friends, all was up to preference. For the time of your education at Amictos, your cottage was yours; you could reside in it anytime and use it however you want. Each Allievo was allowed one assistant if they wanted, be it as a helper or a guardian. But there were rules to that too. The assistant should be of help only in the Osada and only in defence. They were not allowed to instigate an attack in anyway. Jocelyn had decided on bringing Dobby with her, but she had not yet called him. She wanted to survey the area first as there were nobody wandering around right now. The school was to start in a week, and usually the Allievos arrived a day or two before the start, though there was no such rule; Allievos could stay however and whenever they like as long as they had a cottage.

Jocelyn walked through the plain. The cottages present belonged to Allievos, and when they graduated, these would be demolished. That was the way of Osada. She did not want to live in the front and be visible to all, she had enough of that in her life; nor did she want to live so isolated that she would stand out like a sore thumb and attract attention. So she walked a bit to the back of the plain, back enough that Allievos won't notice her, but still there were some cottages around there. There was a stone cottage there, which had no decorations. Jocelyn assumed that the resident won't be bothered much with her and decided to build hers there.

So after she had chosen her spot near that cottage, she closed her eyes, concentrated on her magic and the image of the cottage, and whispered as her headmaster had instructed, "Osada, as an Allievo of Amictos, I have come to learn. I plead you, take my offering and let me be a part of you."

She envisioned and contributed to the land some of her magic. The land was sentient. Headmaster had said that the land would prevent them harming each other and punish the students if they did something against the school and its rules, and if someone was expelled, their cottage would collapse. It also protected the school if they were ever attacked; that had happened a century ago. She could see in surprise as a stone cottage appeared, complete with the small garden area by its side which was surrounded by trees and a chimney on the top. Inside the cottage, the space was very much constricted, with a hall, a washroom, a kitchen, an elf-room, and three bedrooms, all very small. She had wanted it in this structure, for a home like feeling and to have rooms to spare if her friends visited her. Then she settled down to draw runes around each small room; runes she had learnt from a book about space expansion. It was nearly noon by the time she finished engraving the runes on the walls and the floor with a rune-knife. Then she stood in the hall and directed magic into the runes. By the time she finished, her cottage was a spacious house from the inside.

She had drained a lot of her magic and was exceptionally hungry now. So she decided to go hunting for food. But first,

"Dobby! Fawkes! Hedwig!" She called. They instantly appeared in the hall. "What do you think? Any changes needed?"

Dobby bounced around, clapping, "Oh this is beautiful, mistress. Dobby has his own room. Mistress' room is nice. Dobby likes it. Dobby will be happy to keep this place clean. But there no furniture. Will mistress sleep on floor?"

"Ah no, the furniture we bought is in the trunk. I am glad you like it. What about you two? Where would you like the woodhouse that we planned?"

Hedwig trilled at her, which gave her a feeling of gratitude and satisfaction from her. She flew around and finally settled on her location as the wall opposite the window in the front hall. Jocelyn concentrated and two stone bird-houses appeared, the same as they had planned.

"Okay, where do you want me to help?"

The three companions started ushering her away, telling her that they want to surprise her. She shrugged her shoulders, "So I'll leave the three of you to unpack and decorate the house. I will explore around and bring back something to eat."

She left the house with her invisibility cloak and a carry bag. The Allievos that were staying had come out by now and were mostly wandering for their lunch towards the Okrag. She followed them silently.

Okrag was an area governed by elves. They were responsible for the seating arrangement, supplying the food, placing and removing the dishes, taking orders from the Allievos, and packing and delivering the food if that was asked for. There were hundreds of elves there. And the area itself was big, with seating arranged in circular tables of various sizes, placed randomly throughout Okrag. Elves were popping in and out as Allievos arrived and left, doing the tasks as necessary. The area itself was open, but she could feel the difference the moment she stepped inside the circle. There seemed to be a ward which kept the insides dry and free of dust and bugs. In fact, she could bet that even a snowstorm or hail couldn't get inside. Another enchantment that was prevalent was that the moment she entered, she knew the menu of the meal. As there were not many Allievos, she was not noticed much as she took off her invisibility cloak. Her thick and form-hiding robes and her hair seemed to have helped. An elf popped to her.

"What would you like to eat today, miss?"

"Could you please pack me meal for two, with a little of everything? And please add two extra bacons."

"Yes madam. Would you like to take it from here or should it be delivered to your cottage?"

"The cottage please. Does that mean I did not have to come here if I need a delivery?"

"Are you new? The new students start coming only from the welcome ceremony day." The elf asked, surprised.

"Yes, I am new." She did not add anything else and the elf did not pry.

"Very well! Yes, you have to come the first time for us to know your presence here. Then the next time onwards, anyone needs just say 'I would like to order my meal now' and we will find them."

"Okay, thank you. I am Jocelyn. Nice to meet you. "

Jocelyn smiled and turned to leave, draping the cloak over her. She missed the surprised and then shocked eyes of the elf. Assured that her room mates would get the food, Jocelyn wandered around. She was careful to keep out of way from colliding into anyone. There were many cottages spread out, and arrival of new Allievos would only add more. After looking around for a while, she returned to her cottage. Dobby and the phoenixes had outdone themselves. The hall was comfy, with a blue cushioned sofa set with a tea table placed facing the door. There was a window on the right side with blue soft curtains, overlooking the cottage garden. The room had been decorated too. There was large scenery above the sofa of a calm beautiful beach. On the left wall were the two houses of the phoenixes, in the image they shared with Dobby. Those two were in the shapes of bird-houses, made of stone to mix with the room and had open fronts with curtains.

"Hey, what are the curtains for?"

The two birds looked at her smugly and flew to their bird-houses, where they pulled the curtains like they were closing the doors. Then Fawkes peeked around from the side of the curtain, still looking smug, and trilled teasingly. Dobby laughed.

"They say, mistress, they need privacy too."

Hedwig had come out by now and landed on her shoulder, trilling comfortably. Dobby translated again.

"They not want be on show for everyone, they don't want you feel uncomfortable inviting anyone either. They also wants protect you, with surprise attack if needed. Phoenix Hedwig tells you to cast a no-notice charm on houses, so they be invisible unless they allow so."

Jocelyn was touched, "Thank you. The hall is beautiful. I like how you added the trinkets, flower-vases and hangings in the room; make it feel like home. You three are the best."

Dobby clapped his hands, smiling wide, "Come come miss, see how we did inside."

There was a door on either corner in the wall behind the sofa. They entered the right one which led in to the kitchen. It was well furnished now. A door on the right side in the kitchen led into the garden, which they had yet to plant. The garden was surrounded with tall trees and there were two long wooden benches on a side, one as a seat and another as a table. She decided to place runes to protect the garden later. There was a door on the left side too, which opened into a hall surrounded by rooms. These belonged to the bedrooms, the left door of the front room and a washroom. Dobby had laid a comfy brown carpet in the hall and placed a wooden dining table in between which seated six. The bedrooms were all furnished with beds, a wardrobe and a side table with chair. Her room had, in addition, pictures on her wall and other trinkets spread around. Her wardrobe was stocked and her desk was equipped. All in all, her home for the coming days was beautiful.

The starting days passed comfortably. Jocelyn had a note from the headmaster Grendall on the first day, welcoming her and inviting her to get settled. He stated that her private lesson with him would be discussed after classes started. Her companions seemed happy to live with her and the phoenixes were discreet in exploring the school and enjoying the nature. Jocelyn sent her friends letters in the night, describing Amictos and Osada to them. The phoenixes and the elf were happy to deliver them, though she warned them to check for privacy before delivering them. Her friends replied that they were happy for her, and in turn wrote her back describing their return to Hogwarts, announcement of Triwizard Tournament, the ex-auror Moody as their Defence Against Dark Arts professor, and reactions of Dumbledore. Apparently, their headmaster was frantically searching for her, and had personally interrogated them regarding her. Thankfully, Dobby's memory hiding held strong. The headmaster was unable to read any meetings except the one of Diagon Alley, that too only till the Apparition. He once found the letters too, but since they were charmed only to their eyes, he only saw some notes on spells and disregarded them. The Beauxbatons and Durmstrang were the two schools participating in the tournament and they would arrive before Halloween. They missed her, and the twins were still playing pranks, now as advertising for their soon opening shop. They thanked her profoundly for the money and joked that they would make her proud. All in all, Jocelyn was happy to have not lost touch with them and was anxious about what she was about to face.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So, how is Amictos? Please do tell how you feel the school is.

Coming up: A long chapter, all about the first day for new joinees at Amictos.


	8. The first day

Two days before the opening Ceremony, the senior allievos started arriving. Jocelyn sat on the cottage steps under her invisibility cloak and watched as they appeared and went to their cottages. All the allievos were appearing on one of the bridges, and they had to walk in from there. Dobby had gathered all information regarding them and the school from the other house-elves and was now her running encyclopaedia. He sat by her side, pointing out the allievos arriving and explaining to her the beings that they were.

"Oh, a herd of centaurs. I always wondered where they went to learn."

"Have you already met them? Wonderful! They have a school within each clan, though they do sometimes send their kids to other places to learn. Only a few are permitted here."

Jocelyn was happy to hear Dobby speak fluently, and not the garbled language he used to speak till now. She was shocked to learn that it was because house-elves know their original language instinctively, but any other language had to be taught, which the Malfoys never did. So she sent him to buy books to learn correct way of speaking, and was surprised to see him soak it up so quickly.

"Okay, tell me about them."

"You said you've already met them?"

"Met them? Yes. Know about them? No."

"Oh… well centaurs, for you, they are half horse half human."

"Why for me?"

"Well, for them, you are a hairless monkey. I am telling from your point of view." Dobby cringed after saying that.

"Oh I understand. Continue."

"That's it? You are not offended that I insulted you?" he asked in surprise.

"Why? That is how they would see me, I understand. If I call them horse to their face they would be insulted too. I just want to learn about them."

"Let me ask mistress, how would you describe me?"

"Umm, you are like a short kid with long ears, big eyes, and a bald head. Why?"

"Won't you say I am an ugly shrunk creature worth of nothing else but serving?"

Jocelyn turned to look at Dobby, "Dobby, I am telling you, now and forever, you will be my friend and companion. I know house-elves need a magical source to survive. That does not make you inferior. Don't we need plants and animals to survive too? Does that make us less than them? NO. So, just because you like serving me in exchange does not make you less than anyone. You are free to pursue your own interests. Your life need not revolve just around me. Please don't let anyone belittle you. And Never fear my response; the maximum would be that I would be angry. Unless it is because of a betrayal, which I believe you'll never do, that anger will dissipate over time. Please, never again, I don't want to treat anyone the way I was treated in my life. It hurts when you feel that way with me."

Dobby's was crying by the end of her dialogue, and he leapt up to give Jocelyn a hug.

"Thank you mistress, you are the most kind and noble human I have ever seen."

"That remains to be seen. And, stop calling me mistress. That's an order."

"I don't want to follow it." The house-elf dared to speak back.

"Then it is a request. Please Dobby, just call me Jocelyn, or Joy; or anything that you would call a friend."

"How about mistress Joy."

She glared at him, though playfully.

"Okay, the miss Joy?"

She rolled her eyes, "Finally! That wasn't so hard, see? Anyway, you were telling…?

"Ah! Yes. Centaurs live in forests with dense thickness of trees. They live in herds. They have occupations, statuses, ranks and hereditary traits amongst them too. I would say every race has them. The magical ones…"

"Magical? You mean there are normal ones too?" Jocelyn interrupted.

"Humans have magical and non-magical. That does not mean non-magical do not have magic, just that they cannot direct it out of them. But they can train it within themselves. Like your martial artists, they cannot direct magic, but they trained what they have into flexibility. Or in a simpler case, let's say painter. They can too train for martial arts, but they prefer the skill of brush strokes."

"So what makes them different is directing our magic outside or inside?"

"Yes, the rest is all imagination and innovation. That is the reason Occlumency is not a magical ability, only Legilimency is."

"Why?"

"Legilimency is the art of directing the thoughts of the attacked ones to the topic they want; by giving images or some other way. It requires magic to enter the mind, though skilled ones can use it on the surface without magic too, by reading emotions and body language. Occlumency is the skill of preventing your mind from diverting or following others. That requires no magic, only skill."

"Wow! All this makes it feel like muggles are not inferior to us, just untrained. Wait till the wizarding populace learns of this!"

"Now centaurs are the same. Some can direct magic, and a few amongst them are permitted in Amictos."

"Why just a few?"

"That is one unknown; Amictos has some requirements it looks into before inviting any Allievo."

"Then why are there no wizards here?"

"Because they have found simpler way to direct their magic. Magic is like a muscle. Controlling it requires training, focus and will, as well as the right set of mind. There used to be wizards and witches here long time ago, but as wand gained popularity, the will and training required to direct magic as it is, is lost."

"So if an orphan is magical enough, will he be invited here?"

"As I said, there used to be humans here before. But something happened, some incident that no one speaks about. It caused Amictos to banish humans. You are the first after a long long time."

"Why?"

"I do not know."

"Hmmm! Okay, so tell me, are some house-elves non-magical too?"

"No no miss, house elves are magical beings. We are magical; magic is not separate entity for us. We are a medium to dictate magic, with our own skills in directing it. Our source states our level of power."

"Do you mean that a house-elf cannot be bonded to, say, a jungle?"

"Of course they can. They can bind to anyone. Jungle has passive magic. If house elf binds to it, it serves the forest and you won't see the elf again. They become passive too. That's why unicorns are so pure, they bind with pure magic. So do phoenixes."

"Okay. Phew! A lot of information and it is only the beginning. Okay, tell me who else comes to this school."

"Goblins and dwarves do. Both have similar builds, but goblins just work with the stone; the dwarves actually live underground."

"Hey! Are they fairies?"

"They have no wings, so not fairies. They are elves."

"But you both don't look alike."

"Oh no, we are called house-elves because we belong to house of magic. We don't need school, because our essence is magic. Many think calling us House elf is an insult; no, it is our nature. Those are elves. They don't depend on else's magic, but their own like you. They are a bit faster and stronger than you. They can be identified by their pointed ears and narrow eyes."

"Okay! And them?"

"They are Satyr. They are goat like human. Fast on their feet, sensitive hearing and touch, and excellent sight."

"Oh look, there are humans here."

"No no, they look like humans, but they are werecats."

"Were… cats?"

"Yes, like werewolves, were-tigers, were-hyenas, were-cats, were-foxes, etc."

"Why have I heard of only werewolves?"

"Because they are prevalent in our nation and there are a few evil of them. These evil ones force others into this form. That is not right. The victim in not willing and so it becomes a curse. Their magic collects and the full moon triggers them into transforming."

"So what about them?"

"Oh they are the magical ones, they transform at will, though they have to transform regularly to keep their magic under control, else it will force them too. There are normal werecats too, and can change too if they accept their nature, though they cannot direct magic in any form."

"So Remus could have been safe?"

"I am sorry, but though your Moony was bitten into transformation at a young age, he never accepted how his magic changed. A child bitten cannot survive and those bitten late are already prejudiced. His situation could have been safe, but his feelings and environment denied that."

"Then why are there so many?"

"They are born of parents."

"Born?"

"Of course, they are born of parent or parents with same form. Look closely, you can see slight differences in their forms, from the animal. They cast magic as animals, as well as retain senses and quirks of the animal even when not in form."

"Why have we not heard of then till now?"

"Oh they know how to hide. Werewolves are the least volatile of all. The others are even more savage in their forms. They kill first and think later."

"Hey see! Human-like again! Who are they?"

"Veela."

"Veela?"

"Yes veela. Veela are semi-human magical beings; beautiful hair and skin that appears to shine moon-bright. When angry, Veela take on a less pleasant appearance; their faces elongate into sharp, cruel-beaked bird heads, and long scaly wings burst from their shoulders."

"And what is special about them?"

"Their looks and especially their dance is magically seductive to almost all beings, which causes them to perform strange actions in order to get nearer to them."

"Ouch, that's painful to know. Hey! Is he a fairy then?"

"No, he is a dracken. There, the one that arrived there is a fairy."

"How do you tell?"

"You say them apart by their builds and wings. Drackens are like humans, but with bat-like wings. Fairies are like elves with feathery wings. But in power, drackens usually lead."

"Hmmm…. Hey! Looks like it is time for lunch. Tell me the rest later, can you please get us the food?"

"Sure Miss Joy!"

Jocelyn just sat there watching the arrival of the allievos. While most arrived in pairs or single, some came in groups. There was one group of male drackens. They were pretty loud and boisterous, and centred on a single person in the middle. Watching them reminded her of Draco Malfoy and his cronies and she shuddered. There came a pair of female elves too, and Joy watched in interest as they both went into the same cottage. She shrugged; maybe they were sisters or best friends. No one noticed her. Except one. He was a lone dracken with big wide black wings. Headmaster Grendall had said that wings' size implied power. He was just about to enter the cottage nearest to her when he stopped and looked straight at her. Joy's felt her heart stop in fear, prepared to take flight, when she remembered that she was under the cloak and he could not see her. Still, he watched in her direction for a few moments before shaking his head and going into his cottage. There was a herd of centaurs too, both male and female, who galloped into the forest towards the back. In fact, many allievos did go there. She soon realized that the woods were not just for decoration, they were residences too. She wished that she could see those someday.

The last two days, Jocelyn spent them indoors. The allievos kept arriving and she could see a few roaming around. The only time she went out was to ward her garden. She spent most of the time studying her wizarding books or planting her garden. Two times was her door knocked, once by the male dracken and once by the two elves. She did not open it either time. She was pretty worried that she would be rejected and sent back. She could already see that she would stand out as she was the sole human, and she feared the reactions of the much stronger allievos.

Then the ceremony day arrived, when the school would welcome the new students. Everyone was expected to gather on the other plane in a meeting area. Jocelyn was tensed, and as much she did not want to be, scared. Her life was going through a twist which she had no warning, hint or imagination of. Let be going to the Osakond, the mere thought of walking out of the cottage and everyone pointing at her was making lead out of her legs. Her friends had written her encouraging letters yesterday and now the phoenixes and Dobby were reassuring her that she would be fine. Keeping them in mind, she finally pulled up the hood of her cloak, hiding her face and stepped out of the cottage door.

And blinked!

There were no allievos walking to the river, no noise of people moving about, no rush of hoofs galloping through the trees. It was silent. Had everybody already left? Was she late? Did she miss some notification?

Panicked, Jocelyn rushed through the trees, people be damned. In a few minutes, she reached the tree line, panting. She could hear the babble on the other side and rushed to the other side. What met her eyes made her stop. There were allievos calmly arriving just near the trees and casually walking across the bridges. She thought they were the new students appearing just like she had a week ago, but she dismissed it when she saw the two elf girls doing just that. She sighed in relief. There were still some appearing on the bridges and Jocelyn assumed that they were the new students. She pulled up her hood closer, and praying that no one would notice her, mixed into the masses and crossed the bridge.

The view beyond the tree line of Osakond was completely different. The plane had big stone buildings, which Jocelyn presumed were classrooms, scattered throughout the front half of the plane, while in the second half, there were cottages again, the Imparatos' maybe. In the middle of the first half of the plane, there was a circular clearance like the Okrag. There was a raised platform facing the trees and there were rows and rows of benches placed before it. The allievos coming from the tree line were going to them and seating themselves wherever they wished.

"Are you new?"

Jocelyn jerked into awareness and turned to the speaker. It was a centaur. She nodded. He just pointed to the group standing beside the platform.

"You need to wait there. The Headmaster will introduce you before you join us."

Joy nodded and slowly made her way to them. She stood by the side, careful not to direct anyone's attention towards her. Exactly at nine, there was a bang in the air, like that of a bell tower. Everybody fell silent as the teachers, the Imparatos, started appearing one by one on the platform. Headmaster Grendall was looking regal there with his power as well as attire, as were the other Imparatos; even though they were all wearing simple dark colours. He stepped forward to speak, and his voice was heard by everyone, though he did not shout.

"Welcome Allievos! We are here to learn to walk along with magic that has been gifted to us. Magic is the ability to use our strength externally, nothing more. That we have been gifted this ability does not make us stronger or more skilled, just blessed. Magic is the essence of the world, and everybody is a child of magic. I am stating this as the very first statement of this year because I have observed the changing views on magic, the growing superiority of those who have this ability, and in turn demeaning of those who don't. Remember this as a warning; you can as well be defeated with a spell on you as much as with a kick in your feet. So embrace your magic, develop your ability and always strive for peace.

Let me call upon the new Allievos joining us. We have 8 drackens, 7 elves, 9 centaurs, 7 dwarves, 12 goblins, 4 satyrs, 5 were-people, 4 fairies and 1 human. Please welcome them all."

Jocelyn moved along with all the new Allievos to stand in front of the older students. Almost everyone, new joiners included, had looked swiftly to the only hooded figure in the group and there were murmurs all around regarding joining of a human. This was a first in a long time. Jocelyn did not take off her hood and kept her eyes down. It was like the first year at Hogwarts again; the chatter, the finger pointing, the piercing looks… she did not like it. The headmaster read out the names of all the new joiners and then dismissed the older Allievos.

"The Imparatos will introduce themselves to the new Allievos, so others are free to wander around today. Today will be for introducing the new joiners to Amictos and familiarizing them with the rules and methods here. Have a good day!"

The older Allievos soon left the meeting area. The headmaster was now speaking to them, him and all the other Imparatos now standing with them off the platform.

"I am pleased to meet you all. You are the few that have been selected to join Amictos. Know that you should feel honoured to study here as much we are to be teaching you."

The headmaster introduced the Imparatos and the subjects that they taught. Then he divided the groups being-wise and introduced them to their heads. Because Jocelyn was the single human, she was assigned to Imparato Redwick Cresall, along with a group of elves. Grendall hoped that she would not be left alone and make friends among them. With the last words saying that the Allievos were welcome to any of the Imparatos or the headmaster himself anytime, he left the meeting.

Imparato Cresall was an elf. He was fair with shoulder length brown hair, slim yet strong, and about six and half feet tall. Compared to Jocelyn's five and half, he was pretty tall. Even the other new Allievos were taller than her. But the most standing feature about him were his emotionless eyes. He reminded her of Snape. Both showed no emotion; except in her case there was dislike and contempt. When he spoke, he spoke only to the seven elves present, four female and three male.

"Good day Allievos. I am Imparato Redwick Cresall. I will teach you about mental defences. But that would be from tomorrow. Today, it is all about settling in. So first the rules. The most important and strictest rule in Amictos is against violence. We are here to learn, not fight. So the land of Amictos is sentient enough to immediately bind a person if he or she injures another. So keep your views to yourself and concentrate on building yourself, not bothering with others. Another rule, more like an obligation that I expect you to follow anyway, is not to invade the privacy of other Allievos, however much the temptation is. You will have to answer to me, because Osada will catch you."

For the most part, though he was speaking to the elves, he kept shooting glares at Jocelyn as if telling she is the one most likely to break them, or the reason those would be broken; and he would enjoy punishing her when it happens. She gulped.

"The other rules are general; healthy meals, not missing classes unless necessary, studying well, following instructions and conducting yourselves. Amictos is warded enough that you would not be able to step out of it, so I suggest no adventures. The learning plane is called Osakond and this meeting area is called Cita. On the other side of the river, you will have residence cottages and dining. That plane is called Osada. The various buildings you see here are the classes and the cottages beyond belong to the Imparatos, your teachers. The classes begin at nine in the morning. Each class is for three hours and so, you will have only two classes at most every day. There will be a lunch break of two hours when you will have your meal in the Osada. The classes will end at five in the evening, and you are expected to move to Osada immediately unless you are invited or you need some Imparato's help. That is enough in Osakond today; you will learn the rest in time. Now let us move to Osada."

Saying that, he started moving towards the tree line and the other elves followed. The issue was that elves move at a greater speed than humans, so they soon disappeared from her line of sight. Jocelyn sprinted to catch up with them. By the time she had crossed the river and the trees to reach the group, she was panting hard.

"Don't slag around human, I have important things to do than wasting time." He glared at Jocelyn. "Now that everybody is finally here" he said scornfully, "we can start. See, this is the plane where you will reside, and we call it Osada. There are just residences all around, and in the middle of the plane is the dining circle like Cita; we call it Okrag. It is managed by elves and you need to go there once for them to note your presence. Then onwards, you may have your meals served in Okrag or anywhere else. Now your cottages have to be built by you. You can have them anywhere on the plane and any number to a cottage. The size will depend on the number of residents. The luggage that you have placed in the storage area will be automatically transported to your respective cottages. There will be a transport patch in every cottage, identified by a silver square. We call it Transito. They are present all around Amictos for comfortable transportations. Touching it and saying the location will transport you to that location. Now…"

He continued to explain the method of building the cottages. Jocelyn let her eyes wander while still listening. She could see the group of drackens a way away from them having the same type of discussion with their head, who was a dracken too. She could hear the centaurs galloping somewhere. The goblins and dwarves must have gone near the hills. Her attention was brought back when Imparato Cresall finished his speech.

"Any questions?"

"Sir" she dared to ask, "Where would we study? And would we get any reading material?"

His glare intensified, "You learn in the classroom and study wherever you want to. I teach and guide, not babysit you. Surely you must understand that much. Just because you are younger should not mean that you are stupid and ignorant like you are portraying now." He scolded her. Then he turned to the elves again.

"There is a library in Osakond. It is open all time and you may go to it through Transito. You may take one or two books from there for a week. Many of the Osakond books are old and rare, so you would not get the original books, but a temporary copy of them. These copies would dissolve when the time is up unless renewed. The assignments are seldom written, mostly in Runes and Arithmancy. Other than that, they are mostly practical. And where you want to study is up to you. You could study in library, in your cottage or others' or just outside anywhere. Reading material will be delivered to your cottages today."

"Will we have our classes together?" an elf asked.

"Yes, all of the same year will have classes together."

"Do you mean that we will have to sit with goblins, drackens, and all those? Even the human?"

The last part was said with such harshness that Jocelyn's felt slapped. She looked up to find most faces filled with dislike.

 _Do I have to go through all this again? Am I fated to be hated by all?_

"Yes you have to, those are the rules. I suggest you just sit with each other if you like it so."

"Any more questions? Okay then, you may leave to find a suitable place for your cottages and build them. Then you will have to go to Okrag. Go to the older allievos or come to me if you have any doubts. Good day Allievos, I will see you tomorrow."

As everybody started moving, he called out to Jocelyn, "Human, I wish to speak to you."

The elves moved a bit away but remained to eavesdrop on them.

"Listen human, I want to know if you know how to direct your magic, because I don't want to hear you whining again."

"I know sir." Jocelyn said timidly. She decided not to tell him that she already had one.

"I want you to be sure, else I will build one for you right here."

"Here? Sir, I would not prefer it here."

"And you wish me to wait for you to find the spot? I don't have time for that. I will build you a standard cottage and you can live there."

Jocelyn felt humiliated with him looking down on her and the silent snickering from the other elves. She bit back her tears, "I would like to try myself first, sir."

He huffed, "Very well, have your wish. I will build one anyway here. When you fail, come to this cottage before the day is over, else it will disappear at midnight. Do not disturb me. I helped you all I could."

He stormed off with a pleasant nod to the other elves, who dispersed themselves in small groups, whispering and snickering. One girl elf came to her. She was beautiful, but her calculating look portrayed arrogance. She placed her hand on Jocelyn's shoulder, "He is a jerk, isn't he?"

Jocelyn flinched and stepped away from her. She looked down as she was still holding back her tears, "sorry".

"Hey!" The elf folded her arms, "Don't cry okay. I didn't do anything. I just wanted to welcome the first human here, since you are all alone. I am Catherin Serin Do'Voglas. Do you want to search a spot with us?"

"It's okay. I'll manage on my own."

The elf sighed, and Jocelyn could sense the hidden frustration from her "Your wish. I at least proposed. I would have helped you build a better cottage. Come to us if you do find a way to channel magic, we will find a place for you. Else you have one here. Well, see you whenever."

She left with her friends, gossiping. Jocelyn resigned herself to the fact that this is how she is going be treated by everyone. It was sad; she was a girl just trying to fit in, and was being pushed and trodden for no fault of hers. She watched as the Drackens group dispersed too. Very few seemed to be moving in the direction of her cottage. She sighed and moved that way. When she reached her cottage, she was surprised to have company. She found a dracken sitting on the steps of the cottage next to her. In fact, it was the very same one whom she saw two days earlier, only his wings were smaller, in the size of a regular dracken. He seemed to be meditating, so she did not disturb him. Instead she turned her head towards a male elf who was inspecting her cottage and the garden next to it.

Deciding that it was for the best not to interact with anyone, she walked towards the door. She heard a shout from beside her, "Hey wait there! You cannot go in. There are wards around that would shock you."

She stopped in her tracks to look at the elf. Since she was still hidden in her cloak, the elf recognized her. "You are the human. Hi! I am Saelig Zorian Seamase, the elf extraordinaire."

Jocelyn just kept quiet.

"A silent one! Okay, that's cool. What were you doing just walking into the cottage? Imparato Cresall did say that Osada would catch us if we intrude on others. Do you want to be back with him so soon; he seemed to dislike you for some reason."

Jocelyn just looked away, waiting for his tyrant to end so she could go inside.

"You should learn to respect others, you know, or at least pretend to. Especially here where you are single and have no one defending you."

She felt her tears trying to erupt again, this time in frustration.

 _Should everyone remind me of that fact, every single time?_

Not noticing her state, the elf just continued.

"Anyway, I like this area; it is peaceful without anyone barging in every minute. I want to build my cottage here. I was just looking at this cottage. It is so neatly planned and well built. You know, the idea of having a garden surrounded by trees; given one all the privacy they need. I never have that in my home. My father is the Head Minister for the European Elves. He is always busy, and there are scores of people in my house at any time. Never get much time with my father, though my mother still tucks me into bed like I am just a year old."

He noticed Jocelyn not paying him much attention, her head turns sideways. This irritated him, "Am I hurting you? I am sorry. Not having known your parents since childhood, you must feel that was better than nothing."

He saw the girl stiffen, and thought she must have been surprised he knew about her.

"I do know about what's happening with all other races you know, through my father. I am sorry for your loss. But I envy you thinking of the life you must be having, all fun and no restrictions. I don't understand what you are doing here, actually. Why would you like to leave behind the comfortable life and come amongst us? You know… all the fame, comfort, friends, admirers and no sense of fear or loss. Is it for more power?"

Jocelyn heart tightened more and more as he spoke, all the fantastic view everyone had of her life, while it was just the opposite. His next statements broke the dam on her anger and tears.

"Sometimes I do wonder if it was you defeating a powerful opponent. Maybe it was your parents or someone else. Maybe they sacrificed for you? It is not fair to laud you for their deaths."

SLAP!

All Saelig saw were her tear-filled bright green eyes before she stormed off into the cottage next to her. The same cottage he was admiring till now. The cottage he assumed belonged to an older Allievo. It was hers. Only then the meaning of his words sank into him.

 _Oh no! I must have hurt her by reminding her of them, didn't I? Why can't I keep my mouth shut?_

"Miss Potter, Miss Potter, I am sorry! Wait, I did not mean it like that. Sorry!"

But she did not stop, slamming the door as she went inside. Saelig cursed himself for not paying attention to what he was saying. He left the place after a while; since he was sure he would not be welcome there anymore. He really had liked that place, and would not have minded her as a neighbour.

 _Well! Don't consequences warn you to be wary of what you do!_

As soon as she entered the cottage, she ran to her room ignoring the welcoming greetings of Fawkes, Hedwig and Dobby. She dived into her bed and cried her heart out. Her house-mates appeared next to her. Hedwig, who knew Jocelyn for the longest time and treated her as her own, came next to her and placed her head on her, singing a comfortable song. Fawkes joined beside her with his own song synchronizing with her, while Dobby sat next to her running his fingers through her hair.

For some time, all Jocelyn did was cry. She cried for her parents and her godparents. She also cried for herself. No one was supposed to have this much hatred directed at them. It was not fair, being hated just for existing. After her crying had subsided to quiet sobbing Dobby spoke quietly, "Miss Joy. I brought lunch for you Miss Joy. Please come eat something."

"Don't call me that!" Jocelyn got up so quickly that the three got pushed away from her.

"Don't call me Joy. It is disrespectful for the very emotion. I am a bane for just existing. Why are you still here? Go away, you don't need to look after a cursed one. Go away, you will have others who will look after you better anyways. Go away, I don't want you, I don't want anyone near me. I killed my parents, I killed my godparents, next what? No one survives more than a year with me. I will kill you next, and I don't want that on me anymore. I was not supposed to come here. I was right, I am better a hermit. Go away, just go…."

She tucked her knees close to her chest and wrapped her hands tight around them. Before she could hide her face, Fawkes started singing. A soft, sad yet melodious tone. Hedwig flew to her knees and looked at her straight in her eyes. Dobby stood next to Fawkes with tears in his eyes. Once Fawkes finished, he started speaking.

"Do you know the meaning of your name miss? Jocelyn is Latin for happy and joyful. Elaine is Greek for a shining light. Your parents loved you; you were the happiness in their life; the light in the darkness they were living in. They died for you, your godparents died for you. So will we, and so will your friends. We all love to be with you, Miss Joy. So what if you have more misfortunes than others, never forget that you have someone who loves you back home."

Jocelyn watched the three friends, her three companions around her; she felt overwhelmed with the care they were showing her. She took them all at once in a hug; a hug which was filled with gratitude and love.

"Okay", she said, "I will learn hard and fast. I won't let other treatment set me back. I have you with me." As strong as her confidence came, it slipped away just as fast, "Don't I? Please don't leave me, I will not survive."

Hedwig trilled and knocked her beak on her nose. Dobby and Fawkes laughed in amusement.

"Phoenix Hedwig says that you did not let her leave even when she sacrificed herself for you. Now you are stuck with her. You were stuck with her the moment you entered the pet shop and looked at her in awe."

Jocelyn smiled, and they all laughed when her stomach grumbled.

"Ummm… weren't you saying something about food?"

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

A big chapter... finally describing the new school and its students. How did you feel about it? Please review.

Coming up: Classes, teachers and students


	9. Classes

The next day, the actual classes were to start. Jocelyn was not surprised to see books appear in her cottage near the Transito, which was actually in the dining hall. They were the textbooks, a map of Osakond, and her schedule. Since she did not know the technique behind Transito, she just added an alarm rune in the existing ones to alert her of intruders. She touched the Transito and spoke 'the river'. Immediately she was transported to a tree by the river. She noticed all the trees closest to the river had a Transito patched on them. She had Runes class first, so she made her way across the bridge and to the correct building.

The room was filled by all kinds of first years. Not everyone had arrived, but they were all either sitting alone, or with a being of the same race. The group of 5 were-people arrived after her and took seats in an isolated corner, giving her a heated glare while passing her. She could understand their dislike; humans did not treat them kindly. Wishing to sit alone, Jocelyn sat down in an empty chair at the back corner.

Resigned was a feeling that a fairy was feeling; the lone male fairy in the first years. Fairies were usually born female. So a male fairy was always cherished by all. But with this came the bane of chasers; female fairies trying to impress him for mating and elders trying to influence him and keep him under control. Alano Hasan Drestoir was a male fairy, with golden-brown eyes, white wings, long golden hair which came down till his waist and a slim body; he was beautiful, and he cursed his existence for all the insincere following he got. Male fairies could have many mates, it was sometimes necessary as there were few of them. Not all of the mates were needed to stay with the male fairy forever; many stayed just a few years together for an offspring. But it was always the male's choice who he would take. That's why a male fairy was almost always trapped in a complex web of politics. He did not want that. All the fairies following him did not understand that he would not be impressed with all the wooing and sweet-talking, let alone fall in love. And love was something he always dreamed of.

He was resigned to his fate as he transited himself to the runes classroom. When he entered it, he saw the seating arrangement. Unwilling to torture himself with the three female fairies, he sat down besides the human girl. She was still wearing her hood, so he could not see her face yet. She looked vulnerable with her head bowed over her book and her shoulders dropped. But he was here to study, it was a chance of a lifetime to be able to attend Amictos, so he did not bother himself with her.  
She did not lift her head from her book anyway, so all was well.

Alano was surprised when a female elf walked down the rows, smirking. As soon as she reached the human, she schooled her face into a pleasant smile.

"Hey Potter!"

The human, Jocelyn, lifted her head and nodded to her, though her face was still hidden.

"Did you take up residence in the cottage built by the Imparato? That was kind of him to build one for you, though it was just a single room and a washroom. I saw it last evening after we elves had built ours."

Alano couldn't help but raise his eyebrows. This was a first, an Imparato building a cottage for a student. Jocelyn shook her head.

"You did not?" came the haughty surprise from the elf, "Did you stay with someone else? Who let you in?"

Now that is being rude.

Thought Alano. Jocelyn shook her head again.

"Do you mean that you were able to build one? Then why did you not come to us to build it by our colony? You at least would have had company."

Jocelyn just shrugged, and even Alano was getting uncomfortable with her way of talking.

Why is the human still silent? I would have called her out for just that. Maybe she is a pushover.

"Why are you wearing a hood all the time? Don't think yourself ugly amongst us. Every race has their own levels of beauty, and none can match the elves. Come on take it off, I want to see you."

Jocelyn stiffened and turned her face away. By now, many in the class were looking at this interaction as everyone was curious as to how she looked. But the moment Catherin touched her cloak, Potter slapped the hand away. Catherin jerked back with a shout, cradling her hand in another.

"Ahhh! You worthless creature! How dare you shock me? Me, Catherin Do'Voglas. Wait till I tell the Imparato. Amictos would do well without you."

There was a loud clearing of throat from the front. Imparato Randsey had arrived. He was an intimidating dracken, with blue wings, same as his eyes.

"Sir! Good morning sir!" Catherin recovered her composure. "Sir, this human shocked me. I want to see her punished."

"What were you doing, if I may ask?"

"I was just helping her with her cloak, sir. I did not even touch her."

"Against her will, I saw that much. Osakond, unlike Osada, does not stop you from attacking or defending. You would have duels in the future and I have seen challenges for battles being issued to be resolved here. So, in Osakond, you are for your own. Of course, that does not mean that an Imparato will not punish you if they find you guilty of harming someone. So if you do not want to be punished, I suggest you take your seat. Miss Potter, please avoid provoking anyone into fights, you are here to learn, not quarrel. Settle down everybody!"

As everyone took their seats, Imparato Randsey continued, "You may look to your gossips, rivalries, emotions and all that outside, but in my class I want your complete attention. You are here to learn, magic as well as co-existence. Please keep that in mind."

"Runes are universal. You are here to learn to understand and direct your magic, but if you need to make a protection or a change permanent, you need to learn Runes. Because while our magic fades away with time, runic magic lasts longer…."

The lesson continued as such, capturing everyone's attention. Imparato Randsey was a fluent and knowledgeable speaker, and he made the subject interesting. The three hours passed quickly. Alano thought to talk to the human girl while leaving, but she expertly navigated through the departing masses as she left, never giving him a chance. He put her out of his thoughts.

Instead of going through the Transito, Jocelyn walked to Okrag, letting herself a chance to cool down and regroup. The lesson was mighty interesting, and she was pleased with herself to have studied in advance as she understood topics better now. Her encounter with Catherin kept coming into focus for a while, but she pushed it back. She could vent out later with her friends, now was not the time.

When she reached Okrag, she found it well occupied with allievos of all years and all races. The house-elves kept popping in and out, taking orders and delivering food. What surprised her was that many tables had a mix of beings, like the difference in races did not matter anymore. She was please to see that, it gave her hope for a peaceful future.

That hope vanished when she heard Catherin coming along with her group, chatting and laughing. Not wanting to be seen by her, she collected a take-away from the house-elf and left Okrag to eat somewhere else. She wandered around a bit, searching for a quiet private spot. Dobby had told her that he would be out today to tend to the plantations in her meadow, and she had asked her phoenixes to have fun exploring around today. She did not want to call them back right now, and she did not want to go to the cottage either.

After walking for a bit towards the back of the plane, she came across a huge old banyan tree, so wide that it could hide four people sitting behind it easily and so dense that sunlight could not pierce from the top. Its hanging roots, which were numerous, looked themselves like thin pillars. Smiling, she walked around the tree and chose a spot to sit down. She could see a group of centaurs near the trees by the mountain, but they did not bother her if they had noticed her. She lowered her hood and opened her parcel to eat in peace.

Just as she closed her eyes to thank god for food, she heard an 'Ohh!' and quickly lift her hood to hide her face. It was the dracken who lived next to her, black eyed and with large wide wings which were somehow looking smaller now. She must have sat in his usual place, so she immediately cursed herself silently as she started packing her food.

"What are you doing?" came a deep rich voice beside her.

"Sorry, I did not know you eat here. I'll go away." She whispered back, still packing her food.

"Stop! No one should disturb someone from their food unless necessary. Sit. Eat." Saying that, he moved a few feet away and sat down with his food. Jocelyn ate silently; she kept her eyes down and stopped herself from looking at the dracken next to her. As he packed up and stood to leave, for an unforgivable instant, her curiosity took over.

"Why are wings shorter?" she blurted out, "They were long two… days… ago." She trailed off as the dracken glared at her.

"Mind your own business." He said pointedly and walked away. She slumped at the tree, smacking her forehead for her stupidity. No one disturbed her as she ate and then sat there for a while. Only when she heard the bell giving a 15 minutes warning did she get up to go back to Osakond. Her next class was, not surprisingly, Potions. That subject had always stuck to her Mondays, be it as chemistry in Muggle School or as potions in Hogwarts.

Potions was taught by a female were-fox, Imparato Randiel. Due to her fox self, she was an exited potions mistress. Her golden eyes and brown mousy hair only added to her personality. She was always bubbly, but could smell a defect in any potion even from a distance. Jocelyn found that out in her first class itself. At least she did not show any contempt towards her.

"Hello Allievos! Welcome to your first potions class. This class will teach you in making all kinds of potions, the properties of various ingredients and how to use them, and the effects of various processes. Now you should know the tools you are using and always keep them clean. Tools that are in front of you are yours for the year, and I would suggest strictly taking good care of them. Potions is a very useful subject, for they only sometimes use magic. They are always helpful where magic is not, if you know which to keep handy. For example, let's say that you are hurt and losing blood. Now losing blood makes you lose focus; focus that you need to heal your wound. In such case, a handy blood-replenishing potion would help loads, won't it?"

Several Allievos nodded.

"Okay I won't bore you with many examples, I will give them as we make the required potions. Since I gave you the example of a blood replenishing potion, let us make that today. Now the tools we need for that…."

She gave them good lecture about the tools for the day, their use and their maintenance, as well about the properties of the ingredients used and what effect they have when put in the potion in a certain way. Jocelyn could not believe that Snape left out so many basic details for Potion making. She would definitely have to share this knowledge with her friends.

But the brilliance of the Imparato showed during the class as she was walking around and watching everyone work on their potions. Jocelyn was very careful in following the instructions. Some were not.

"Miss Gretchel! Watch out. You are adding too much water." She said to an elf as she was with a centaur on the other side of the room. In the next instant, she voiced another warning to a goblin situated behind her, "Mister Gutsneer, you have to let it cool down before you add soweet." And in the next moment, "I will send you elves out if you do not stop talking. Making potions does not need that."

She was efficient in her observations and quick in correcting mistakes. Jocelyn respected her just for that. But the way she never belittled or scolded anyone, always keeping up a cheerful attitude no matter how many mistakes she corrected, took her to a grand new level. Jocelyn felt happy for submitting a perfect potion, and felt ecstatic when she received an approving nod from Imparato Randiel.

After the class was over, everyone moved to Osada; many preferred the chat-filled walk to Transit now. Jocelyn saw many older students walking to the trees in groups, all chatting and joking among themselves. She missed her friends.

She took the Transito to go to her cottage from the tree line, as she was wary of anyone following her. Dobby was there to welcome her.

"Good evening Miss Joy. How was your day?"

"Good. The classes were excellent. You know, I never thought…"

She described her day to the house elf, who listened to everything with a smile. Dobby was happy to see his Miss Joy so enthusiastic; far better than the sadness she was in yesterday. He wished he could punish those who said those things to her, but by rules, Osada would banish him from the school; and that was something he did not want. He did not want to leave the side of his favorite person by far. He would live for her and if needed, even die for her.

Once she finished, he asked, "Do you have any homework for the day miss?"

"No, but I will revise everything just the same. But not now, I am in mood for pizza. I had a good day. Want to help?"

"You may rest, I will make it for you."

"But I want to make it Dobby, enjoy the process and all. It will be more fun eating that way. So will you help?"

"Of course."

"Good. Hey! Where are Hedwig and Fawkes?"

"Just around. Actually, they had told you this morning to summon them when you arrive, remember?"

"And you are telling me now? Oh god! Hedwig will kill me. Hedwig! Fawkes! Are you free to come now?"

A soft trill sounded from behind her, the two phoenixes were looking at her innocently.

"Umm… good you are here."

Hedwig stared at him accusingly. Jocelyn gulped. "I did call you as soon as I came back."

Her stare only intensified into a glare.

"Sorry, sorry. I got lost in recounting the day to Dobby. I should have invited you too. Sorry! Umm, will pizza forgive me? I will recount everything again after that to you."

Hedwig looked at Fawkes, who looked up as if he was thinking. After a short moment he nodded and then Hedwig too nodded to her. Both the birds followed them to the kitchen.

"They had arrived well before you, Miss Joy, so need not recount. They heard what you said. They just wanted to see how you would react."

"Phew! Okay, mistake do once, second become crime. I will not leave you behind again. So let us make pizza!"

Hedwig landed in front of her and looked squarely in her eyes. Jocelyn tried to divert her attention, but Hedwig was relentless. It was like the phoenix was studying her and found something lacking. She trilled, and Jocelyn understood even before Dobby could translate.

"Leave it alone, Hedwig. I am fine. The day was great."

Hedwig trilled again; that got the attention of both Dobby and Fawkes.

"I am not leaving anything out, Hedwig."

Hedwig stared at her accusingly and gave a sad trill. Jocelyn finally slumped in her seat.

"The day was good, the teachers, Imparatos, are excellent. I did learn a lot. I just wish they treated me same as the other students. I just wish I was treated like a normal 14 year old going to school; not more and neither less. I thought I would get rid of all this attention and discrimination after leaving Hogwarts; it just keeps following."

Fawkes trilled and Dobby stepped forward, "then you should rise above the challenge, Miss Joy. You made friends and progress in Hogwarts, this is just another school."

"That's what I thought too. That's why I did not bring it up…"

"Yet you should not bottle up your emotions and frustrations." Dobby cut her off. "You control yourself amongst them, I won't deny you, but here at home, you need to let it all out. Else it will eat you from inside. You know we won't abandon or judge you, right?"

Jocelyn sighed and nodded, "Okay."

"So will you tell the parts that you skipped out in your narration?"

Since she had envisioned a stone oven built in during construction, she had no problems baking the pizza. She had made it many times with the Dursleys, but never had the chance to taste it to her content, just a sneaked in bite from the leftovers. And Hogwarts never served it. So this was indeed a treat. She told them all the discrimination and prejudices that the people at Amictos had against her and how they showed it. Then she let it all fade away while eating with her companions.

"I cannot eat anymore; why did you leave out the last one Miss Joy?"

"Will you please deliver it to the dracken next door, Dobby? And just add an apology from me?"

Dobby nodded and popped away. He came back soon and the four of them went through their day.

Just some feet away, a dracken named Segrace Hiilgus Brinhat was looking at a food dish with surprise as well as doubt. He never expected an apology from the human, let alone a peace offering. He had never heard of this dish (a pizza?) and was doubtful if this was a trick. He had just arrived to his cottage when a house elf popped in.

"Sir, I have come on behalf of Mistress Jocelyn. She regrets her mistake with you today, and sends this pizza she made herself as peace offering. She promises never to bother you again."

Stunned, he just nodded, and the elf popped away. Now he had two choices – he could go ask for his dinner from the Okrag, or eat this Pizza which would be enough for him. Convincing himself that Osada would not allow anyone to deliberately harm him, he went ahead and took a bite. Half an hour later, Segrace was pleased to have not rejected the pizza. It was delicious. Humans indeed are a queer race.

For Jocelyn, the rest of the week passed in a similar fashion. Two classes every day. Breakfast at Okrag, lunch at the Banyan tree, while dinner with her companions at her cottage. She was silent with everyone, who in turn did not bother her much as they were busy adjusting to the new classes.

Classes were very interesting. The classes were for 5 days a week and each class had a different subject, counting them to 10. Monday had Runes and Potions. Tuesday had mind magic and physical defense. Wednesday had Customs and magical defense. Thursday had control of magic and politics. Finally on Friday they had literature and arts and astronomy. The last class was held during the night, allowing students to sleep in the weekend. Each class was interesting in its own right.

Jocelyn was worried about her reception in mind magic by Imparato Cresall, rightfully so because he was not fond of her. Not wanting to be late, she made sure to leave a half hour early. There was nobody in the class yet, so she sat by the last corner seat again and tried to calm down like it said in the school book. By nine, everyone has arrived, and the Imparato entered the room on time. Whatever grudge he held against her, he did not let it affect his teaching.

"Welcome Allievos! We are here to learn about mind and the magic related to it. Our mind is a complex thing. Other than running our body both consciously and unconsciously, it also thinks, forms emotions, develops thoughts based on experiences, decides what to remember and what not, and most bizarrely it forgets. You might wonder what is so great about that, but just think for a moment. However much you explain thoughts and emotions based on past experiences, it is not easy to just explain forgetting something, is it? Everybody says to do what your heart says; I would say that it all comes from your brain again. It created emotions welded to your heart based on past experiences again. Thinking with your brain implies logical thinking irrespective of experiences. Following your heart implies making decisions based on your experiences and emotions connected to things. Even intuition comes from those experiences, and the feelings you associate with anything, even directions.

Now, I am telling all this is because mind magic tries to manipulate these very things. For example, let me tell you about Legilimency, which is the most widespread use of mind magic. In that, a legilimens tries to provoke a memory through association. Like he would try to know about Amictos by reminding you of several creatures, or try to learn about what food you ate at breakfast by reminding you of waking up and hunger. But before we reach that level of magic, we need to train our mind first. Human, did you read the first chapter?"

Jocelyn nodded.

"You will need to remove your cloak later in the year when we start to actually practice mind magic. By that time I expect you to stop hiding you ugliness, protecting you beauty or whatever you are doing."

Jocelyn nodded again. She felt humiliated again, but decided not to let it distract her. The Imparato then continued the lesson, introducing them to calming their minds.

By the time the three hours were up, though she had a slight headache, she felt that the lesson was worth it. It was fascinating and the Imparato was, for all his faults, very much efficient with his subject.

Physical defense was well placed after mind magic, because the Allievos were in no shape to absorb any more knowledge. Instead they were made to run by Imparato Zeilo. She was a female dracken - dark skinned, brown eyed, red hair and red wings. There were actually three tutors for physical defense. Imparato Zeilo for hand-to-hand fights, Imparato Xavier, a male centaur for archery and Imparato Sawdust, a male goblin for weapon handling. They rotated weeks amongst themselves and expected students to practice what has been taught. Jocelyn could see the doubts of many faces if Imparato Zeilo could actually teach them manual defense. She proved them all wrong when she called them to attack her, and no one could touch even a hair. She was strict, but fairly so. She dismissed the class after telling them to run for an hour everyday at anytime. She pointed out Jocelyn saying that she would need much more stamina to be able to keep up with anyone here.

Customs, the first class on Wednesday, was completely new. It was taught by Imparato Soreign , who was a female fairy with golden hair and green eyes. She was gentle like a calm ocean and beautiful beyond belief.

"Welcome Allievos to Customs. It is a class where we learn the greetings, customs and complexities in varied races. This course is optional from next year, but you will need to know at least the basic greetings of every race, which is what we will learn this year. We will start with goblins, because they are ones most intolerant of any mistakes in greetings. I can see you few goblins smirking at others. Don't be so proud of yourself, for every race is as complex as yours and some are even more so. I don't think even you know all the gestures of goblins at this age. So pay attention and be respectful."

Saying that, they had three hours full of basic goblin greetings. What made it interesting was the fact that the Imparato explained the origins of greetings and the emphasis behind each. So it was not just rote memorization like she thought, you actually learn a part of their culture and the emotions behind each greeting.

Saturated with such knowledge, the next class of magical defense put them in action. This was taught by Imparato Denstray, a male elf with waist length black hair and black eyes. He was a slim and strong figure, with feline graces; he could stand still as well as move swift. Unlike back at Hogwarts, here magical defense had no spells. It had them channeling and directing magic, with occasional runes. This started with a three hours lecture of how to understand magic.

"Magic is the essence of everything, and yet nothing at the same time. Just because you can direct it does not mean that it will become sentient towards you, or that it will abandon you just because you cheated. It is all based upon will. Oaths, of course, state your will to accept a punishment if you do or do not do something, which is again you directing magic to stand as a witness and monitor. That's all. If you had not taken any oath, you will not be punished by magic. Nor will it stand aside and let you do something you promised not to do, however much noble your intentions may be. Defense is similar. You will have to understand what is coming at you and how to prevent it to defend yourself. And in the same way, you need it for an attack too. We will start by directing your magic into a stone. I have given each of you a crystal; your aim would be to saturate it with magic by my next class."

Then he turned to her, "Miss Potter, I would suggest you not taking your chain off for this class. It will make your task difficult, but I don't think you know yet how to direct you magic. That is not a simple task for any human."

I have to work under bindings? Again?

Was the frantic thought running in her mind as Jocelyn worked twice as hard to saturate the stone. She was exhausted when she went to bed, and the stone wasn't even a tenth part full.

Thursday had control of magic as the first class, taught by the headmaster himself.

"Good morning Allievos! Hope you like your stay at Amictos."

Many nods and smiles, some sincere, some to impress.

"Very good. I would like to restate that you all are welcome to me or any Imparatos for counseling or guidance. On Thursdays we will have control of magic as your first class. Can anyone guess what it entails?"

One goblin spoke up, "To help us save magic for ourselves to be used in emergencies?"

Another were-cat spoke in competition, "To prevent eruption of magic when emotional?"

An elf would not be held back, "To increase the effect of spells with less energy?"

"Well done all of you! You all must have noticed that this lesson does not have any text to refer from. That is because one's magic is one's own to control. You have to build your definition of what would you call ultimate control of magic. For myself, I would consider it to be at the best when I can control whether or not I can cast the spell. Even I have restrictions with my magic, and I like to control what I want to restrict. Now, I would suggest all of you to take this class till you believe you have reached a goal you set for yourself. Because when you can control magic, you control yourself."

"The process is tedious, I'll give you that; and many do drop out when they reach a certain level they seem okay with. Let's see till which point you will push yourself. So today, I want you all to think. Think and write down what you consider the utmost control of magic. Think well and not just follow others, because your goal will reflect yourself, and only you will be able to achieve it."

This was a boring class for Jocelyn, as she already knew what she wanted. She watched around as everybody discussed among themselves. No one was sitting beside her today, not even the male fairy who sat with her 4 times out of 6 classes. So she did the next best thing when nothing to do; she slept.

Headmaster Grendall watched as another set of Allievos sat down to write their future. They did not yet understand the importance of this course, to attain satisfaction with magic so that you don't need to use it just to believe it is with them. He also watched as Jocelyn wrote one line on a sheet of paper and then went to sleep.

Why was she so tired today? Did she over-exert herself in putting magic in the stone yesterday? I thought that would be the easiest task for her?

When two hours were done, the headmaster announced, "Very well, if you think you have written your goals, you may submit them and leave."

Jocelyn was the first one to get up. She gave him her slip and left. It saddened Grendall to see the difficulties the poor girl was facing. Though the doubt of her placement rose again and again, he could see how she would prosper once she crossed these fires. The fact that Amictos accepted her was proof to her capabilities, character and strength. He looked down at her slip to see her goal for her magic.

I want to be free to hide.

A confusing, yet clear goal! The question remained; will she hold herself strong till she reaches it?

The second class for Thursday was Politics. For this class, Alano joined next to her. This was taught by a male goblin, Imparato Pharust. No offense to him, but Jocelyn found remembering the names and dates very hard. Imparato Pharust was an excellent storyteller, and taught his lessons as so. They had started with the history of Elves in the past decade. When she was out of the class, she could clearly remember all the events that happened, just not the names and dates. But it was an interesting class too, and Jocelyn was surprised to find that Alano was very much interested and well versed in this subject.

Now Friday was for literature and arts in the morning. The instructor, Imparato Sophianna, was an old veela. Though she looked to be in her fifties by muggle standard, she was actually around 130 years old. She had a passion for books and a keen eye for arts.

"Good morning Allievos and welcome to your first class of literature and arts. Now, before I begin, how many of you do like books?"

Many Allievos raised their hands.

"And how many of you like paintings?"

A few hands rose.

"Sports?"

Many male and a few female hands rose this time.

"Music? Songs?"

Almost all hands rose.

"Singing and dancing?"

This query got response mostly from elves, though a few other hands rose too.

"Just because we have magic does not mean we have talent for arts. For one, these require patience and practice, not shortcuts that magic seems to provide us. You can catch the intricacies while hiding the flaws in a painting; you cannot do that anywhere else. You can pour out your emotions and let no one know the reasons in a song or a dance; you cannot do that in a speech. You can write nothing and say everything in literature like poems, essays, and books. You can vent out all frustration and let open all joy, and yet hurt none when playing sports. That's how important arts and literature are in one's life. You may see people around you when you go back into your worlds; people are busy doing jobs, looking after children, organizing and attending parties, and so on. But unless you get a sense of self satisfaction in any of them, a peace within yourself, you won't be happy. Miss Potter, do you have skill in any art?"

Stunned at being asked, she shook her head.

"Well, you can always develop one, don't worry. There is no age or race for craft."

She turned to everybody, "This is what this lesson is for. I know you have astronomy tonight, so we will have just the morning session where I will introduce you to arts and literature one by one. The displays that I produce before you will be there in the library so you are free you inspect them at your leisure. So today we shall begin with paintings and the famous painters…"

This lesson was, as she said, peaceful. No one made a sound other than gasps or hums of appreciation. It was like you were in other world, and coming out the room plunged you into reality.

Jocelyn rushed to the cottage after a hearty meal at the banyan tree, and to share her experience with her companions. After a peaceful sleep, she woke up for astronomy, which was held in an open plain in the middle of Osakond, right under the stars. Imparato Marshelt was a male centaur with short black hair; by the way the centaurs greeted him he was also their group head.

"Allievos, I hope you had good sleep or else you will miss the wonders hidden in the stars. Centaurs have known since time ago how to read the stars and the hidden meanings behind them. Stars are not tiny dots in the sky; stars are the numerous suns in the universe scores of distance away. Compared to them we will not even measure as a speck of dust. While trying to find how other suns are operating and if they support life is an ongoing challenge, we will not delve into that. Instead we will see how the placement of these stars affects us and what they predict. If our sun has the ability to support us by keeping us around just by sheer gravitational force, just imagine what force these stars hold. Believe it or not, stars do affect our thinking, moods and movements. These are subtle yet strong, and seldom does someone have the will to defy what direction push us to. So study of stars will give us hints; which we have to decipher and calculate the affect that would be there…."

This was a completely new perspective to astronomy, and Jocelyn found it intriguing. They again started with simple constellations, but the introduction stayed with her throughout the class. All in all, Amictos was a school taught by experts; not like Hogwarts which announced so, but could not live up to its proclamation.

* * *

 **Author's Note :**

Not much action, I know. But I felt compelled to write about the classes and the reactions of the students and teachers in the new school.

What do you think?

Coming up: meeting the headmaster, a fairy and an elf becoming friends, and a dracken


	10. Making Friends

Saturday, Jocelyn spent it indoors, gardening, cooking, studying, writing letters, and doing other casual works. She asked her friends through Dobby if they all could meet, either in Amictos or in the meadow. They refused, regrettably saying that they were still being watched and cannot just disappear, and neither should she come here because they cannot trust the headmaster to not cast any spell to detect her presence. They did assure her that they would meet on Hogsmeade weekend. They had found an interesting empty room in the castle and for about two hours in the evening, they chatted back and forth. Fawkes and Hedwig were only too pleased to be their messengers, nicking off snacks with every flash and enjoying the petting of so many people.

When Jocelyn was coming back from her breakfast the next day, she was surprised to find Headmaster Grendall standing at the steps of her cottage, merely looking around.

"Goodmorning sir! Did I miss any notice saying you would arrive? I am sorry; I wouldn't have left if I had."

"Peace Jocelyn. Calm down. I am here of my own will."

"Oh, please come inside sir."

As soon as they were inside, Dobby popped in.

"Goodmorning sir. Welcome to our cottage. I saw you arrive five minutes ago, but please excuse me that I did not let you in. I did not know you well enough to."

"Don't worry about it. I was happy to wait for her."

"Thank you. Miss Joy, shall I get some refreshments?"

At her nod, he popped away. Meanwhile Jocelyn got rid of her cloak and joined the headmaster in the sofas.

"Did something happen sir?" she asked tentatively.

"Why are you so scared Miss. Potter? I am here just to see if you are settling in well. Let me say that your cottage is beautiful."

"Thank you sir."

"If it is okay, may I know why two bird houses just became visible in your hall?"

Jocelyn was surprised for a moment that he could see the houses. But when she looked at them, she could see that the birds themselves made them visible. Dobby popped in with cookies and orange juice for three, and joined them. Dobby and Jocelyn looked at each other and rolled their eyes.

"Come on you two, that was just a game. You don't make grand entrances every time."

Grendall was smiling, "Oh you have two birds. Do let them make the entrance; I would love to see it."

Jocelyn looked at him for a moment and then shrugged. She nodded to Dobby, who smiled and popped beneath the houses and started announcing.

"Presenting, the grandest of the grand, the essence of fire and light, the mischievous, the intelligent, the sharp and the quick, Fawkes of the phoenixes! And may I present to you, the fiercest of the fierce, the most beautiful, the best planner, the charming, the cunning and caring, Hedwig of the phoenixes! Behold them in their glory!"

The two phoenixes simultaneously slid aside their drapes to become visible and synchronously flew and landed on the table. By now, the headmaster was laughing.

"HAHAHAHA! Oh my! You have really fun little companions with you, Potter. My congratulations!"

"Thank you sir?" her thanks was filled with doubt.

"Trust me Miss, having someone who brightens your day when you are all depressed is a blessing. Not many have it, and not all those who do appreciate it.

Jocelyn nodded, still apprehensive about his visit. Headmaster Grendall now took a soft tone when he noticed this.

"Jocelyn Potter, please do not doubt me. I have your best interests and I care for you. I know that being here is a challenge for you. But just you see, cross these fires and you will emerge a diamond."

"I'm not so sure" she mumbled, "maybe I am not supposed to exist."

"And why would you assume that?"

"Why don't I fit anywhere then? Not with my relatives, not in primary school, not in Hogwarts and neither here."

"Ah! Do you really think so? You are looking at all the negatives and sticking to them. That would only cause you grief."

"I should be in grief, I kill everybody I love. Everybody!"

"You don't dear. They choose to stand with you or in front of you because they love you."

"Then I am not worthy of it." She was close to tears now.

"May I call you Jocelyn?"

She nodded.

"Jocelyn, understand dear, that everyone dies one day or the other. It is the way we do it and the reason we leave that matters. The people you say died because of you; maybe they did so, but they did it willingly because they loved you, because you are important enough for them to do so. Wailing against their feelings is disrespecting them, because all they wanted was you to live and be happy. Grieve their deaths, but remember them for all the love and happiness they shared with you. Because that is what mattered most to them, for you to live happily. Do you understand?"

Jocelyn sighed and nodded.

The headmaster chuckled, "I see that we still don't agree with each other. How are you Jocelyn? How is Amictos treating you?"

"I am fine."

She did not look into his eyes while saying that. Dobby was shaking his head in disappointment behind her. Grendall noticed all this. He got up from his seat and knelt before her on his knees so that they could see eye-to-eye.

"Will you tell me the truth child?"

"Why do you care?" she whispered.

"I care for all of Amictos and everyone in it. When you attended my class, I saw you tired and spent. May I know why?"

"Oh that… I had to charge my crystal the night before."

"So? No one else was as tired, why were you?"

"I don't know, I tried my best but not even half of it is filled till now. It is hard. Maybe I am not suitable here?"

"Stop degrading yourself Jocelyn, it does no good." He said strictly, catching the girl off guard. She snapped her head up to his.

"If you say that it is not fair for anyone to belittle anyone, then first start being fair to yourself. You look pathetic saying that you belong nowhere. You are in this world, you have potential, so make a place for yourself. If people's death really weighs on your heart, then resolve yourself to make their sacrifices mean something."

He scolded her. Jocelyn was speechless and ashamed of her behavior by the end of his dialogue. This was the first time she had seen him cross with her. Then his face and voice softened.

"Listen Jocelyn. Hating yourself is not the way to live. I am telling you to live for yourself, not just drift by. If you think that being with you endangers someone, then make yourself strong enough to fight that danger, not crumble in self-criticism. Now I will ask you again, why were you tired that day?"

"I told you, it was the assignment."

"Which should be easiest for you. You know how your magic needs to be spent, and why you are carrying the stone I gave you. Your magic has a very high limit; the wards you placed inside and around the cottage themselves prove that."

"But I was not using the stone when charging the wards. You told me to use magic without the stone."

"Of course I did. So why was charging a simple crystal so difficult?"

"Do you mean I was not supposed to wear the stone when doing that? But Imparato himself forbade me to remove the chain."

"He did what? Oh no child, the stone is a soother to your magic, not to be used as a limit. Tell me what happened."

So she did. Once she started speaking, she could not stop herself from relaying everything that happened in the week. By the end of her narration, Grendall was deep in thought.

"I see that I had misjudged the severity of reaction from the Imparatos. The students, I could guess; you will have to prove yourself before being accepted by them. I will talk with the Imparatos; they should not be treating you like this."

"NO!" Jocelyn exclaimed, before calming herself, "I mean... please sir, don't fight on my behalf. If you do mean that I have to prove myself and be strong, then please let me try first to disprove them of their notions. You are right; blaming oneself is cowardly, I will not shame my parents."

Grendall smiled at her resolve, "Very good. I am glad. Don't let anyone push you down, and please do come to me or someone you trust if you are having any difficulties or doubts, okay?"

Jocelyn agreed.

"Good, I am repeating it again, you need to learn to control your magic, so don't let the stone be a limit when you are using it. Whatever anyone says!"

"Okay sir."

"Well, I will take my leave now. Fawkes, Hedwig, Dobby, farewell and take care of each other."

Just as he reached the door he heard a quiet 'thank you' from the human girl. He smiled at her and left, assured that she will do well now.

Alano Hasan Drestoir was lazing in his cottage today. More than two months have passed in Amictos and it was Sunday, so he promised himself a day away from the three girls who stuck around him. He liked Amictos and its classes, the Imparatos were very efficient in their teaching. The senior fairy Allievos he had met impressed him with the tales of the school and the adventures they faced. He was looking forward to all the new experiences he would get here before being thrust into the manipulative politics of fairies. He actually did not want that, and prayed for a miracle daily.

His cottage was fairly simple, with a room attached to a bedroom and a washroom. He wanted to build an elaborate one, but did not dare in fear of the girls invading his residence. He deliberately built his cottage near the elves, in hope that it would discourage the ladies from surrounding him; but alas, they built their cottages just around him. The two other male fairies in Amictos were in a similar situation, but at least they were receptive of the advances from the females. Not him. He had searched for another spot, a secluded one, where he could reside in peace, but was unable to find one so far.

Saelig Zorian Seamase liked Amictos very much. Having lived in a busy environment till now, the school was like a fresh breathe for him. He liked the lessons and the Imparatos, and was most impressed by their no-nonsense attitudes. He hadn't met such people till now, who put their tasks ahead of scoring impressions and did their jobs with complete care and dedication.

Once he had failed to impress the human girl, Jocelyn Potter, he had migrated away from the spot only to be hounded by the rest of his year mates. They compelled him to build a cottage with them. He could not escape them, and the most he could manage was to convince them that he needed his own space and so his own cottage.

The two guys were not willing to bear being crushed between their respective race's classmates, and that was what led to their introduction to each other.

It was the customs class of the second week. The moment Alano entered the class, he looked towards the usual corner in the back where Potter usually sat, but she was not there yet. Since there was an empty row there anyway, he took the seat and prayed that the other fairies would not sit beside him. He cursed when he heard the arrival of the fairies and resigned himself to their endless chatter and flattery that made no sense. Fortunately, before they could reach him another voice spoke beside him.

"Hi! May I sit beside you?"

It was one of the elves, a boy named Seamase if he remembered correctly. He nodded.

"Sure, but won't your elfin classmates refuse to sit beside me?"

"That would be a blessing really. I cannot stand their incessant adoration anymore, which is clearly fake anyway. When will they understand that buttering up to me will earn them no benefits? Just because of my father is a minister doesn't mean that they will be get recognition just by being with me."

"If you don't mind me saying, it actually will. I mean, they will be recognized enough that they are Amictos alumni, but being in good graces of minister's son will only sow good impressions."

"Yeah I understand. Doesn't mean I like it."

"Uh huh" Alano agreed.

"So why are sitting all the way back? Same troubles as mine?"

"Why would you assume so?"

"Come on, I know male fairies are few and revered. Either you would be relishing in their attention, or shying away from company. Those are usually the reactions of the ones most followed around. Seeing you in the back points to the latter."

"Actually, there is a third possibility too, where one would remain unaffected and yet turn into a good leader for them. But yes, I do not fall into that category either." He sighed.

"I can understand. So, where is our Potter today?"

"Our?… Potter?"

"I mean, she sits with her hood on away from everyone else, and usually it is either you or me who looks to a chance to sit beside her."

"She is a quiet one."

"And no one else would sit beside her due to their prejudices. That is a benefit for me. I concentrate on my classes better when I am left alone."

"I agree. And anyway, she shies away from almost everyone, it is sad to look at her always all alone."

"Well her life, her choice. So would you like to sit with me from now on? That would benefit us both, for we would both be able to attend to the class better."

"I would not hesitate to consent to that. Best be in a corner every day, with the human at most for company. She won't disturb us."

"Agreed!"

Thus started their acquaintance, which soon turned into a good friendship. They both helped each other with studies and company and liked each other's attitude. They had similar interests and were appreciative of each other's talents. But most of all, both of them were honest souls and had nothing fake or exaggerated between them. Just genuine like for each other.

Their friendship was not agreed upon by their classmates, and that disagreement was what started the arguments between the elves and fairies. Those happened often and with silly beginnings, but inevitably ended with comparison between the two boys.

So today, when he was disturbed by voices from outside, Alano sighed.

 _Another argument._

"How many times do we have to tell you? You are welcome to do whatever you want, if you are not disturbing us. But you don't listen!" It was Selina, one of the elves from his year. She was debating against the three fairies. There were a few elves, all first years, standing by her side.

"And how many times do I have to tell you, mind your own business. You cannot be the judge of what we can and should do." Riana, a fairy girl replied.

"I am not judging your actions. All I am saying is that it is disturbing us. You all just sitting outside Alano's cottage, gossiping and giggling all the time, are noisy and distracting. I will complain to your Head if this continues."

"See if I care!" Riana brushed her off, "If it troubles you so much, then go settle somewhere else. I won't mind."

"What is going on here? Can't you people stay quiet? I am trying to relax on my weekend here."

Saelig came out of his cottage scratching his hair. With his clothes all rumpled he looked like he just got out of bed.

"Good morning Saelig!" Alano greeted him, joining him by his side.

"Hey Alano! Happy Sunday!" he greeted back with a smile.

Both smiled at each other and then turned towards the arguing group. By now, other residents living around us had joined to watch.

"What is the issue here, if I may ask?" Alano Interrupted.

Selina stepped towards him, "You! It is all because of you that these fairies make all that noise outside all the time. What do you have to say? Tell your fans to keep their nonsense to themselves."

Riana stepped forward too, "Drestoir! It is not true. We would never disturb anyone, let alone you. Tell me, were you ever disturbed by our meetings outside your cottage? And anyway, it is not like we are only ones, these fairies are always flirting with Seamase out here, now that's revolting to watch."

Seamase dragged his palm down his face, trying to control his frustration. Alano felt the same way.

"I…" he tried to reply, but Selina cut him off.

"Of course you would support your kind. It was generous of us to let you stay by us, and this is how you repay?"

"But I…"

"Generous of you?" this time it was Riana who butted in, "Generous of you? For your kind information, this is Amictos, not your home where you can get anything by throwing a temper tantrum. We settled here rightfully by our own rights and magic."

"Yeah yeah, I can see how good of a magic you have, if all that your beloved can create is that deplorable cottage in Amictos."

"Woah! Don't advance on to insults now…"

Saelig tired to curb the escalating argument, but he was ignored.

"Our beloved, as you put it, does not need fancy pansy cottages to show off his magic."

"Come on now, we are diverting off the topic…."

Alano was again cut off mid-sentence by the angry Selina.

"Of course, if he cannot show his talent even in basic things, that's what it means; that he is incompetent. Our Seamase does not live in such discomfort."

"Hey!" cried Saelig, "Don't drag me into this…."

He was ignored again. In fact, the other males had backed away from the arguing females, and only Saelig and Alano were cornered in between them, unheard.

"I saw how much he is capable of, can't even design a cottage of his own. You had to practically draw it down for him, and that too a pathetic girly one."

"Stop berating each other girls…."

"At least he asked for help when he needed it. Not like your man-fairy who lives like a hermit in a cave."

"He does not need any…"

"STOP IT!"

Both Alano and Saelig shouted at the same time. Alano was holding his anger better than Saelig, but both were frustrated.

Saelig advanced on to the group, scaring them slightly with his angry expression.

"I do not understand what seems to be your problem. You have this argument every week since we have come here, and it escalates from a silly topic to comparison between the two of us. We are not gods, okay. We are here to learn just like you. All this argument shows all of us in a very bad light. For once and last time, tell me what seems to be the trouble that you have with each other."

"I don't want them here." Was the reply that came from both Selina and Riana.

"Why?" was the calm yet angry question from Alano.

Riana turned to him, "Drestoir, please see how they disrupt our very routines and interrupt us in everything we do."

Selina turned to Saelig to put forward her argument, "They disturb our peace and quiet. We came here first; they should find a place of their own."

"That's not true. Drestoir was the one who found this location and built the cottage first here. You just leeched off his choice."

"See how they insult us Saelig. I don't understand why you are friends with that stupid fairy."

"They insult you at every chance they get. Why should we allow them to live with us?"

"Oh stop it! All of you!" Saelig shouted, "You are making no sense with your arguments. They neither have strength nor matter. You are just arguing for argument's sake. I am getting sick of living with you."

Saelig was angry now. Alano placed a hand on his shoulder as he spoke, "I have a solution. Let us request Amictos to build a line of trees between the two groups until we all learn to live with each other."

"But Drestoir!" Riana spoke her concern, "that would be through your cottage. Are you willing to sacrifice your residence for them? Of course, you can live with any of us, we won't mind."

"Silence!" Alano said seriously, "I am going to relocate. I do not want to come between your arguments again and disrupt my learning. I will find a new place in Amictos to build my cottage and I request none of you to disturb me there."

"Excellent idea!" Saelig jumped at the chance, "I will relocate too. That way neither group will have any reason to argue."

Before the girls could argue anymore, both boys nodded to each other and departed; leaving the girls stunned that their heroes are moving away.

"Good solution Alano, thank you." Saelig patted the fairy's shoulder as they walked together.

"That's all well and good, but it would be useless if I cannot find a place soon to relocate."

"You mean 'we' right? I want to move away too, and if we live next to each other, then I hope others would hesitate to live with us."

"Yeah! I wish we can live with the drackens, but the ones in our year are a tight-knit group and probably won't welcome us near them."

"I would even live with the satyrs if I could survive living in the forest. But I like open lands. And I know I cannot move as fast as them amongst trees."

Then they both said at the same time…

"Or we could live with the human."

They both stopped in their tracks and looked at each other. A smiled slowly spread on their faces. This was the perfect solution. No one would bother them if Potter was with them, for many disliked humans.

"Do you know where she has her cottage?"

"Yes, actually I was planning to build my cottage near hers, but I said something unwelcome which hurt her. She walked away after slapping me. I decided I would not be welcome there anymore and moved away."

"Slapped you? Why?"

Alano just shook his head after Saelig had narrated the incident, "Please forgive me for being blunt, but you really need to watch what you speak, especially to someone who had been singled out and isolated."

"I know, I know. She never shows discomfort with me sitting beside her, so she must have forgiven me. Or at least I hope she has and I get a chance at a new start."

"Well let's see. Are we there yet?"

"Yeah, just a few more minutes walk….. There... See? The cottage with trees beside it. That's hers."

"Hmmm… a good idea to place a garden like that. Earns you privacy as well as peace."

"What are both of you doing here?" A strong male voice spoke beside them. They turned towards the questioner, who was actually a senior dracken standing at the steps of his cottage.

"Goodmorning sir" Alano greeted him while Saelig bowed his head. "We were just roaming around looking for a good spot."

"What for?"

"Umm…. We wish to relocate our cottages and find a place with some solitude."

"Why should I believe you? For all I know, you are another group coming to torment the poor girl."

"No way!" Saelig exclaimed, "We would never hurt anyone. In fact, we want to leave because our friendship was causing discomfort between our classmates."

"Again, why should I believe you?"

"We are willing to swear an oath if you require so!" Alano stepped forward.

"Really?"

"Really!" Saelig nodded, "but just listen to our reason and you will not need one. Please sir."

The dracken sighed and told them to come inside. Once they were seated in the hall, the two first years told their tale to the dracken. After listening to them he sighed.

"Okay, I understand. I will not object you living here. My name is Segrace Hiilgus Brinhat and I am a year senior to you. But you need the acceptance of Jocelyn too. Be careful, she is a delicate girl."

"Do you mean weak?"

This made Segrace laugh, "No way, she is the strongest when it comes to magic and personality. No, she is of fragile heart, which has been broken many times, and still has to bear every insult thrown at her."

"Oh what happened? Do you know her well? She never has uttered a single word in class till now nor has anyone seen her without her cloak."

"I've seen her!" Segrace said sadly and told them his tale.

Segrace Hiilgus Brinhat was a dracken of a warrior clan; of a family who were excellent and loyal fighters. It was accepted and even praised in his family to swear oaths of protection to someone. The choice was always of the individual, for an oath was ineffective without true devotion. Segrace's parents were loyal followers of the king and had sworn their oaths to the royal couple. Unfortunately, when Segrace was just five years old, they died in a fight in order to save the king. Since then, he had been provided for by the royal couple, and raised by his relatives. Everyone expected him to swear his oath to their son, Prince Kinwer Mallsoe Sendrin, who was actually a year younger than him and also his classmate.

When queried how that was possible, Segrace replied that he was allowed to attend Amictos only when the prince received the letter a year later. He was not sure if he wanted to swear his oath to him, for he did not feel such loyalty towards him. But that was for later.

"So where did you meet Potter in all this?"

"Impatient aren't you?" Segrace smiled at Saelig who smiles sheepishly. "I did not meet her until she came to Amictos. Actually, when I arrived to my cottage this year, I was surprised to find a new cottage near mine. This wasn't there before and unlike you, not many allievos change places randomly, especially in the holidays. I could feel strong magic from the wards surrounding the cottage. But when I knocked at that door, no one answered. So I just let it be."

"I first saw her at the big banyan tree beyond Okrag, where I have my lunch daily. You see, even among my kind, Brinhats are a feared lot. Being one of them, along with arriving a year late isolated me from making close friends, though everyone is cordial with me. So I was surprised to find a cloaked allievo there. She soon became my companion, a silent one, who never spoke after her first apology of taking up my space under the tree.

So it continued for two weeks. I guess you first years were still adjusting to Amictos till then. But the news of her presence had spread by then. I saw her again that weekend, the Saturday night to be precise. She must have come from the Okrag. She was scratching her hands and face all over. By the time she reached halfway to her cottage, she fell down on the ground and began crying. Not normal sobbing, but outright crying."

"What happened?"

"A cruel prank. Someone, possibly a senior, had cast a charm which caused serious itching all over her hands and face, making her scratch herself severely."

"That's cruel. And how did they escape punishment from Osada."

Segrace just shook his head, "You need to understand something. Osada is completely against harming someone or invading someone's residence. It will definitely capture you if you do that. But minor spells which just cause discomfort are excused, for they could even be used in silly pranks."

"You mean that Amictos seniors are that cruel?" Alano was surprised.

"Alano, you need to understand that very few are inherently cruel or evil. These people were just working on their dislike of humans; they are not essentially bad."

"How can you say that?" Saelig asked in outrage.

"Let me give you an example; if a dragon is found near your colony, won't you drive it away or hurt it?"

"Of course, they are dangerous!"

"Does that mean you are evil, or that particular dragon was there to cause harm?"

"No but… I just mean… Oh okay, I understand. It is all because of their prejudice. I hate it when knowledge defends the wrong."

"Of course it was wrong of them, no excuse for that. So I rushed to her and took her to her cottage, where her house-elf Dobby immediately popped beside her. He thanked me and took her in. Even I am surprised that he was able to heal her by next day."

"Anyway" Segrace shook himself out of the memory, "Since then, we acquaint well with each other. I won't say friends, she is too wary for that yet, but we do interact. I've not even seen her face till now, but I can say that she is a soft hearted person. I have seen her pranked and insulted many times; some she could avoid, some she couldn't. But each of them hurts her. That's why I am telling, I will not allow you near her if you wish to hurt her."

Both Alano and Saelig nodded.

"We understand." Saelig said, "Don't worry, we will leave if she declines."

The three of them stood up to go to her house. They had just opened the door when there was a pop behind them. They turned to find a house-elf there.

"Oh! I did not know that Mister Segrace had guests. Forgive me. Miss Joy sends these cookies and a greeting for a happy weekend."

"Wait a minute Dobby!" Segrace said before the elf popped away. "Could you please help us?"

Dobby just stayed there and nodded.

"These are classmates of Jocelyn, Alano Drestoir and Saelig Seamase. They want to meet her once. Please ask her if she would consent to meet us."

Dobby hesitated, "I am not sure, but I will definitely ask. Please give me a moment."

He popped away. Alano turned to the dracken, "So that was Potter's house-elf?"

Segrace nodded, "yes… and now we wait."

It took five minutes before Dobby came back, but he came back with good news.

"Miss Joy has agreed to meet you in her cottage. But she asks for a promise from you, that you would not reveal whatever you see inside her cottage to anybody."

"I would be happy to make the oath." Segrace nodded. But Dobby shook his head.

"Not a magical one. Just one from your hearts! Miss Joy trusts you Mister Brinhat, and she trusts you not to bring pranksters into her cottage."

Segrace looked at the two men for their agreement, which they readily gave. Dobby then clapped his hands in happiness, "Then you three are welcome to our cottage. Though I should warn you, be ready for some surprise."

Dobby vanished after saying that. The three looked at each other before shrugging and walking towards the human girl's cottage.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

Introduction complete. Now the drama has started. Say what you think!

Coming up: Life of friends at Hogwarts till now.


	11. Contestants

Neville and Daphne were sitting in the Hogwarts express, waiting for their friends to arrive. It was almost time for the train to depart. Their friends must have boarded already. Daphne sighed.

"As much happy I am for Joy, I do miss her knowing she won't join us this year. Hogwarts won't be the same."

Neville snorted, "Just imagine; how can Hogwarts cope without her adventures?"

"Good morning kiddos!" greeted the Weasley twins at the door, "here we are. Don't worry, you won't be able to miss us!"

"Yes of course, we are enchanting!"

"Oh my, I never saw you blocking the doorway to heaven!" exclaimed Luna as she entered in from the gap between them.

"Oh Luna…"

"my sweetheart…"

"you are like a fly…"

"you can squeeze through anything…"

"But where is the heaven?"

"I only see two devils!"

The twins spoke as they closed the doors and took their seats, earning a playful glare from Daphne and Neville. The train let out its whistle just then and started moving. Everyone looked out of the window as the platform passed by and the woods appeared.

"Every year is different, isn't it?" Daphne spoke from her seat, averting her gaze from the window.

"Yeah" Neville continued, "the first year, we were all sitting separately. The second year it was me and Daphne, the twins, and Luna and Joy. The third year was the best, all of us were together. And now, one of us is missing."

"The last year was indeed best…"

"what with all the home made muffins…"

"and cookies, don't forget the cookies…"

"and Joy!" the twins chorused.

"Hmm she was happy last year; she had to be, she spent the whole summer with her godfather away from her relatives."

"And so were we. I was indeed looking forward to going to school with my friends instead of alone. I never had friends till I joined Hogwarts."

"Lucky for you!" Daphne told Luna, "You made friends the first year itself. I had to spend a whole year alone with snakes all around me."

"Hey don't be so hard on the Slytherin, Daphne. There must be many good ones in there too, aren't there." Fred countered. George agreed with him.

"Yeah, I agree with Joy on that part, a whole house could not be evil. That way, we are doomed."

"I am not denying that." Daphne shook her head, "But Malfoy had a lot of influence on most of the first years, hell most of the Slytherin, due to his father. I was one of the few who spoke against him, and us few did not dare get together openly for fear of being attacked."

"Hmm.. don't worry, we will guard you now, at least you have your sister joining you this year." Luna consoled her.

"I know, I will have company everywhere. But I don't want to drag her away from making friends of her own. She need not get dragged down into isolation due to association with me. She does not share my views anyway, not as well as all of you."

"We are so loved!" The twins cried out in unison, wiping away fake tears from their eyes.

"Oh shut up!" Neville smacked them lightly on their shoulders, "If not for Joy, we would never have joined you in our group, the loud chatterboxes that you are."

"Yes sir, Neville sir!" the twins mock saluted them. "We will always be grateful to our general Longbottom sir, sir!"

"General?"

"Of course we have ranks in our group…"

"Nev is the general…"

"Luna is the motivator…"

"Daphne is the security…"

"And we are mere soldiers!" they both slumped in their seats.

"I won't say soldiers, you are too lazy unless motivated… maybe pranksters." Luna commented off handedly.

"or comedians." Neville added.

"or idiots." Finished Daphne.

"Wow George! So many titles!"

George smiled wistfully, "I wonder what title Joy would give us."

Fred shook his head, "Don't dear brother. She comes up with the most sarcastic ones."

Both of them shuddered at the thought and all of them had a hearty laugh. Such went their journey, with lots of laughter and frequent reminders of the absence of a part of their group.

They were all surprised with the headmaster's announcement of Triwizard tournament to be held at Hogwarts. But the greater surprise was being held back by their respective heads of house. Headmaster Dumbledore came down to talk to them.

"Good evening children!"

"Good evening headmaster" Neville greeted for all of them. "Why were we held back?"

"Fear not, if you had played any pranks, you are not caught yet. I just wanted to ask how you all are."

"We are fine Headmaster." Daphne replied.

"How has your vacation been?"

Before any of the others could reply, Luna let out huge yawn and replied back.

"Sir, if you don't mind, please ask about Jocelyn and be done with it. No need for pleasantries, you are becoming too transparent. And I am very sleepy after that heavy meal."

In response, the twins too let out big yawns, mocking as well as hiding their snickers. Snape fumed beside the headmaster, who was himself caught unaware. He sighed and asked his questions.

"I heard that you met Jocelyn…"

"Miss Potter!" Neville interjected, "Excuse me sir, but she would have told us if she gave you permission to use her first name."

"Control your tongue Longbottom!" Snape snarled at him before Dumbledore shushed him.

"It is okay Severus. Forgive me children… Would you please tell me about your encounter with Miss Potter in Diagon Alley? Do you know where she is right now?"

"Why waste time Headmaster…", Fred said mockingly, which George continued.

"Just read it from our heads…."

"Like you would do anyway…"

"You don't trust us to tell the truth anyway" they finished.

"Please Mr. Weasleys, you are asking me to perform Legilimency which is a restricted practice by law." Dumbledore fumbled when he heard them pinpoint his thoughts.

"Oh, but you do it anyway…"

"Like you did today in the great hall…"

"or you did after Potter's encounter with basilisk…"

"or her encounter with Quirell…"

"or after our meeting Mr. Black…"

"for whom you did nothing to prove his innocence, mind you…"

"or when you…"

Dumbledore sighed, cutting them off, "I see that you are aware of my actions, but those were necessary at that time."

Neville dared to mock yawn too, surprising his friends, "Sir, please, we are giving you permission this time, do it and let us go."

Dumbledore gave a sigh, which they could read as fake one, for he did not waste time in probing their minds. But Dobby's magic held strong and he only learned of their meeting till the apparition from Hogsmeade. He pulled back in frustration, though he tried to hide that unsuccessfully.

"So none of you have any idea where she is right now?"

All of them shook their heads simultaneously. McGonagall could not stop herself, "Stop mocking your professors and headmaster, students. Your behavior is nearing insult."

This time it was Daphne who countered her, "Forgive us madam, but pray tell us where did we mock any of you during this whole meeting. Just because we don't have any information to give you doesn't put us at fault."

She turned to Dumbledore then, "If that is all then, sir, may we leave?"

"Why are you being so insolent?" snarled Snape.

"Oh, we are just in grief professor, we are missing our friend. Please excuse our to-the-point dialogues. We are just not in mood to talk in riddles and puzzles. If we may leave headmaster…?"

Dumbledore nodded and watched the group go. Just as they were about to walk through the doors of the hall, he saw Miss Lovegod gasp and stop in her tracks. Then she turned back towards him.

"Oh headmaster, just so you know, we might have been injured that day, but Jocelyn is too good a fighter to spill even a drop of blood. If you catch my drift, you are wasting precious ingredients. Goodnight and sleep tight."

She smiled and they all walked away, teasing Longbottom boy about being sleepy enough to be able to yawn in front of professor Snape. Dumbledore did get her message; the blood tracking potions he was counting on would be of no use. Another way to find her blocked.

The kids did put up a united front. He only wished this was not against him. This unity could accomplish so many things if used properly. He turned to the professors.

"They did meet him, but Miss. Potter left them soon after the encounter and hadn't contacted them since. This much they are telling the truth. We have to find some other way to her. At least we know she is not in Voldemort's clutches. Yet!"

A few days passed as such. The group could practically feel the professors watching their every move, so they dared not contact Jocelyn. The day they knew that Jocelyn was joining Amictos, they waited in anticipation for her letter. They were not disappointed.

Luna was skipping along the empty hall happily. She could feel that she would be contacted by Dobby today and wanted to give him space and privacy. And she did want to skip that day. Just when she was skipping on the seventh floor, she heard an invisible pop. She stopped and smiled, "Lead the way, Dobby."

Dobby was surprised at her deduction, but accepted her response from the description that Miss Joy had given him about her rare talent of accurate predictions. Still invisible, he held her hand and led her to the come-and-go room, where he instructed her how to open it. He asked her to collect her friends and come there an hour before lunch.

They arrived on time to find Dobby, Fawkes and Hedwig waiting for them. They first cast all the necessary charms to safeguard the room and then sat with them.

"Hey Dobby! Hey Fawkes! Nice to see you! Hedwig, you look beautiful as always!"

The phoenixes trilled happily at their greeting as Dobby replied, "Good to see you all too. Miss Joy apologizes for not being here, but Fawkes had warned her of tracking charms against her. She wishes that you would come to meet her instead."

"We are sorry Dobby, but Dumbledore is tracking us too in hopes that we do just that. But he has no power outside Hogwarts, so we can manage it then. We will write back when it will be. Ummm… we can communicate through you, can't we?"

"You can do it through Fawkes, yes. I will bring Miss Joy's letters and put them in your trunks. Miss has mastered the identity charm you taught her wandlessly, so no one but you can read it. If any of you have any letters, you call for Fawkes and he will deliver it. If you find some free time and privacy together, then the phoenixes have agreed to be the messengers. Is that okay with you?"

"That's splendid. So do you have any letter for us now?"

"Of course."

Together, they read about Joy's first glance at Amictos and her cottage. Then they sat together and wrote her all about what happened in Hogwarts till now. They felt happy that they would not be separated from their friend in communication, if not in sight.

A week before Halloween, the students from the two other schools arrived. Out of the five, Daphne and Neville were the two who fell completely under the half-Veela's charm. Of course, you can never say whether Luna was affected or not, she always carried a dreamy smile on her face.

That night, since the headmaster was out of castle for some meeting and it was a Saturday, they decided to get together in the room of requirement and talk to Joy. So they collected as many snacks as they can from the kitchen and went into the room. Fawkes was waiting for them there.

"Hiya Fawkes! How is our magnificent guardian doing today?" Fred shouted to him. Fawkes trilled happily in return. He held out his claw which held a letter. Once rid of it, he flew to Neville's lap where he happily petted him.

'Hey guys, how are you doing?'

Fred wrote down the reply.

'Fred - We all are doing great! The Durmstrang and the Beauxbatons arrived today. Do you know that Victor Krum, the famous Bulgarian seeker, is still studying his last year in Durmstrang? Ron was drooling when he saw him.

Well he drooled more when he saw a half-Veela student in Beauxbatons. So did Neville and Daphne, as a matter of fact.'

Fawkes bit off a piece of bacon before flashing away with the letter. Soon the reply came, this time with Hedwig.

"Hedwig!" George exclaimed, "oh pretty pretty bird! How long since I've seen you! Oh you look beautiful darling!"

Hedwig glared at his over-action and hit her beak on his head. Then she flew to Luna's lap where she delicately took the offered cookie and then preened her feather. Daphne read out the reply.

'I am good guys. I am still adjusting here, what with all different races around.'

"She is not telling the whole truth, is she Hedwig?" Luna asked the bird in her lap. Hedwig shook her head with a sad trill. Luna sighed, "We need to talk face to face. Well read on Daphne."

'I know Ron would drool over anything famous or rich. I have personal experience with that aspect of him. Don't worry it is normal. Now Daphne and Neville, that is an interesting piece of news! Was that a male or a female? I have very good advice to give in either case to score a date. Interested? By the way, there is no half veela, you either are one or not; there is no in-between.'

The twins laughed at her reply and the red faces of both of their said friends. Neville immediately snatched the parchment and started scribbling.

'Nev – thanks for making me and Daphne the laughing stock of the group; we will pay you back for that. Now what is that advice? Just for knowledge purpose mind you!'

The birds flashed to and fro taking turns and in turn went to everyone for a pat and snack. Here is how the rest of the conversation went.

'Nev, you must understand that the last sentence made me laugh more than anything else. How about this? Let the twins write to me the reaction of all the school when you do score a date. That would make my day.

I've seen veela here; they are very flirt-resistant and easily offended. That I guess is natural for someone who is followed everywhere for questionable reasons. So be honest with them, try to impress them with yourself rather than with praises and show-offs. To be resistant yourself, you need to accept yourself that she has charm that attracts you to her, and say anything with that in the forefront of your mind. This won't cancel her charm, but lets you be aware of your actions and words. Be in control and you will win a date, for veela do look for honest company; they don't get it too often. And if a veela declines, it means she is no longer impressed; back away. Don't pursue and make a fool of yourself.'

'George - Wow Joy, you managed to make Ned speechless. He is currently silently planning how to approach her. Good job! There was a goblet presented to us today, it is for the tournament. It was aflame with blue fire, otherwise like a normal cup. We are told that contestants have to put in their name in it along with their school name, and the participants would be declared on Halloween. It has charms regarding identity and honesty. And the worst part, none of us are eligible to compete! That's blasphemy. Only sixth and seventh years are allowed.'

'Well, good luck to anyone who gets selected, I guess. Don't worry; 1000 galleons and a little fame are not worth the trouble. I have a better project for you. Build a magical camera which can print photos out of memories. You income would rise to lakhs and crores. Can you do that? It would make it easier for us to share photos too, without carrying a camera around.'

'Daphne – now you have silenced the twins. They are plotting something. Wait, let me call them all back…. Okay, now tell me about yourself there.'

'It is okay here Daph. The headmaster met me in the beginning and told me that I have to stay strong and prove myself; that there are prejudices against humans because of some incident in the long past. Other than that, the classes are amazing; and just to piss the image of Snape in my head, I am excelling in Potions!'

Then another letter came immediately.

'I miss you guys! Very much. I don't like being all alone. Guess I would not make a good hermit.'

The last note sobered the emotion in the room.

'All of us – We miss you too, Joy. Hogwarts is not the same without you. We are not the same without you. We are coming to visit you this Sunday. There is a Hogsmeade visit allowed the day after Halloween. Wait for us!'

'I am, eagerly so. See you then. I have some assignment to finish now. Take care guys; and do tell me how the date goes Nev. Until next time.'

The five students got up to leave. Luna patted the phoenixes one last time, "Take care of yourselves, and please take care of Joy too. She is alone there.'

Hedwig and Fawkes nuzzled into her neck before flashing away. After Dobby came to hide their memories, the group then went separate ways; each holding a copy of the conversation with them.

Neville gathered his guts two days later and finally walked to the veela who was sitting with the Ravenclaws. She raised an eyebrow at him. The whole hall was looking at him, ready to make fun of him.

"Hi! I am Neville Longbottom. May I know yours?"

"Fleur Delacour." She said curtly.

"Will you go on a date with me the next Saturday?"

"Why should I? I hardly know you."

"Neither do I. Your school was pretty impressive with your display the day you came. I just want to know more about what you know, what type of person you are. I thought a date would be perfect occasion to do so."

"Why me? There are plenty other girls, ask one of them."

"I am interested in knowing you; just be a friend to you if nothing else."

"You know I am half-veela right?"

"I know there is no half of a veela, and yes, I know you are one."

"Then snap out of the illusion you are under due to my charm." She snapped.

"I won't deny that your charm does not affect me, I was one of those drooling at your entrance. But I promise, I made sure my intentions were my own before approaching you. Please come out with me one time, I won't ask you again if you don't like me."

"I am free this weekend, ask me for this Sunday instead and we'll see."

"Sorry, I am not available this weekend, I promised my friends to go out with them."

He pointed to his friends sitting at the Gryffindor table. Fleur watched him for a while. Everybody in the hall were pretty sure that Longbottom was going to face the humiliation of being rejected, so it was no surprise that many mouths hung open at her next statement.

"Okay, one chance. But if I don't like it, you will not come near me again."

"I promise. Thank you."

"Welcome."

She turned back to her breakfast, and Neville returned to his friends with a winning smile. To their credit, none of them acted as if he had won a lottery; they just smiled at him in congratulations.

Of course Fred and George wrote the descriptive narration of that incident, for which they received a happy reply. Then came the Halloween on Saturday.

The great hall was filled with students of all three schools sitting amongst the Halloween decorations. All waited anxiously for the names of the three participants of the tournament. The first name was of Victor Krum representing Durmstrang. The second name was of Fleur Delacour representing Beauxbatons. The third name was of Cedric Diggory representing Hogwarts. Amidst all the claps for the participants, the goblet flared a fourth time, spitting out the name of Jocelyn Elaine Potter, again representing Hogwarts.

This put everyone in shock. Similar questions arose everywhere… was Potter amongst them? Did she put her name in secret? Did she cheat the goblet? And so on.

The five friends of Jocelyn looked at each other in shock, and nodded to each other signifying that they need to speak to Joy tomorrow regarding this. This exchange was luckily missed by everyone in the confusion.

Dumbledore called out her name thrice, but there was no response. He even announced that Potter would lose her magic if she did not participate after being selected, for this was a magical contract. But still there was no response. Tensed, headmaster Dumbledore dismissed the students and went to meet the other professors and responsible adults.

Just as they were about to leave the next day for their outing, Dumbledore called them out.

"Good morning Headmaster!"

"Good morning! Going out for the first Hogsmeade outing?"

"Yes sir." They nodded.

"I will not delay you. Please listen to me once. You need not tell me if you know the location of Miss. Potter. If you have any single way of contacting her, I urge you to tell her that she must come and participate in this tournament. Else, she will lose her magic. I do not know how her name got in, but she has to come. Please, tell her this much."

Daphne immediately stepped forward, lest any of them would show any doubt or hesitation in their expression.

"Sir, we told you the truth sir. We do not know where she is. We have no contact of her. I worry for her too, but I don't know how to send this message to her. Won't your phoenix be able to find a way to contact her? Because sir, I don't want Jocelyn hurt. Please sir, find her. If I do find a way, or if she somehow contacts any of us, we promise to tell your message sir. We will intimate you if it happens. Just stop doubting us sir, we care about her more than you."

With tears brimming in her eyes, Miss Greengrass then walked away from the headmaster leaving him convinced that these kids indeed did not know anything about Miss Potter. He watched as the remaining four excused themselves and followed her, Miss Lovegod patting her shoulder and whispering something to her. Miss Greengrass sobbed and nodded, then put her head on Miss Lovegod's shoulder as they left his sight.

At least that was what Dumbledore assumed happened. In reality…

As Daphne was wiping her fake tears, Luna patted and shoulder and whispered,

"Great job, you got tremendous acting skills. Do you know that he pities us right now?"

Daphne's shoulder shook in spite her urge to control her laughter. She nodded to Luna.

"Good, he will not bother us today and will not suspect us if we go invisible to other students. Now rest dear Daphne, we have a lot to talk to Joy."

As soon as they neared Hogsmeade, they slipped into the woods nearby and went into them far enough that no one could see them. Then they called for Fawkes, who came along with Hedwig and both were happy to transport them to their friend's cottage.

In a flash of flames, they vanished.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

So the name did come out of the goblet. What do you think will happen in that regard? Please review.

Coming up: Meeting of humans, elf, fairy and dracken. This would be start of new friendships.


	12. Friends old and new

As the phoenix flames flashed in the room, Jocelyn could not stop herself from whooping in delight. Her friends were finally with her. The said friends appeared with smiles on their faces.

"Thank you, thank you for coming to see me. It feels so good to see you guys again." Jocelyn gushed. Oh how she wanted to hug each of them, but her feet were frozen on ground. All she could manage were tears of happiness while hugging herself tightly. The others understood.

"It's good to be with you, Joy!" Luna stepped forward and slowly took her palm in hers, not commenting when Jocelyn flinched. Jocelyn squeezed hers back.

The boys tried to dissipate the heavy emotions.

"Pretty good place you've got here, Joy. Can I move in with you?" Neville's words surprised Jocelyn.

"Who are you and what happened to the shy Neville?"

"Oh! He scored a date with a pretty girl." Fred patted Neville on his shoulder as he shrugged shyly.

"What we wrote to you will not match the tsunami it caused in Hogwarts." George commented off handedly as he surveyed the bird houses.

All of them laughed, it felt good to be together. After a good view around the cottage, all of them settled in the sofa with snacks that Jocelyn had prepared just for this occasion.

"So tell me Joy" Daphne said, "who lives around you? Are they treating you well?"

"Ummm… a dracken lives next door. I purposefully chose a less populated area, so the next nearest ones are two fairies. I did not speak with them till now. The dracken, yes we've talked, but he is a senior, so we don't walk in the same circles."

"But he is your neighbour, haven't you even shared a greeting, or a cookie with him?"

"Hey I wrote to you about that... I gave him pizza."

"That was a long time ago…. Never again?"

"Ummm… he does say hello sometimes."

"Joy!" Fred said, "Please tell me you are really doing good here; that you are comfortable here."

"You saw the cottage.. I am good."

George leaned forward, "You know my brother is not talking about that."

Jocelyn looked away; she did not like being cornered.

"Let's do a dare" Luna suddenly piped up, "Send a few snacks to the dracken next door."

"Luna…."

Daphne did not know why Luna said that, but she guessed it was another of her powerful intuitions, "Sure. You've made plenty. Send him some with a hello."

The twins grinned, "If you want, we would be your delivery boys."

"NO!" Jocelyn refused, "Never you. I don't know if Amictos would remain standing if I let you lose. I will send through Dobby, but no more dares after that."

"Sure." Luna shrugged. Anticipating what Luna felt coming up, Jocelyn packed a few items and sent them through Dobby.

Dobby returned in a couple of minutes, "Miss Joy. Dracken Brinhat has requested a meeting with you now along with his two guests."

Jocelyn froze in her place, "What?"

"Shhh Joy… we are here with you. Calm down." Luna patted her arm as Neville spoke to Dobby, "Who are the guests?"

"A boy fairy and a boy elf, Mister Neville."

"Let them come, Joy…" George looked at her.

"Yes, we will be there to support you and back you up…."

"Yeah, you have too many fighters around you right now…"

"Don't be afraid."

Jocelyn sprung up from her sofa, backing into a wall, "NO! no. No one will come here. What did you see Luna. Why did you do this to me?"

Luna tried to calm her, "I don't see future, Joy. But I did get a feeling that something good will happen if we contact the dracken now. So we did. Nothing bad will happen."

"You don't know the future, you just said that."

"I did Joy. Intuition aside, what could happen anyway? I say this is the best time, with all the backup that you have around you. We may not be as strong as you, but we sure as hell know how to defend if needed. Remember the training we did together. Trust us, trust me, please."

Jocelyn was still refusing, "You don't understand! No one knows anything about me or Fawkes or Hedwig. I don't want that to get in the open. Please, allievos will only taunt me more if they learn about me."

" _Taunt_ you more?" George was suspicious now, "What do you mean by taunt you more?..."

"Now is not the time for that, George" interrupted Daphne. "Joy, trust us please and believe in yourself. You are not this crying wimp that you are showing right now, you are the bravest and strongest of us all, and you need not hide that under all this irrational fear."

Joy crouched in corner and nodded.

"Good!" Neville nodded and then turned to Dobby, "Dobby, go to them and say that Joy has accepted. But you need to take a promise from them that they would not reveal anything that they see here."

"A magical oath sir?"

"No, a promise from their hearts. If they cannot keep even that, then we will not let Joy suffer here anymore. Amictos must not be the only way for Joy to learn. She does not need to do that under all this emotional torture."

"And Joy!" this time it was Fred, "Just stay under your invisibility cloak, let us be the judges okay. We can all catch up and talk after this, okay."

Jocelyn was ashamed of her behaviour in front of her friends. She did not want them to know about her treatment here, yes, but more than that, she definitely did not want them to see how it was affecting her. She was afraid that they will prefer leaving her than to put up with all this drama. She hesitantly stood up, "Guys, I still don't think…"

"Shhh Joy!" Luna comforted her, "Don't let this be your weakness. We are your friends, we know you. Don't worry, we still won't leave you alone."

Sighing, Jocelyn went off to fetch her cloak while Dobby popped away to give his message. Fawkes and Hedwig hid themselves in their bird-houses and Fred and George turned to their group.

"Okay, this is how we will do it."

"Luna and Daphne, you will not speak one word in the beginning…"

"Let's see how much and what they know about our Joy…"

Dobby popped back and said that they were coming. A few moments later, there was a knock on the door. Dobby let them in.

Segrace, Alano and Saelig were eager to finally meet Miss. Potter personally. They hoped that she would let down her guard and be a bit more open with them. Of course she was the first human they had encountered in life, so they were curious about her too.

So they were indeed shocked to find five people in the room; five humans to be precise. Two of the males were twins who were sitting with the third on the sofa. On the side sofas, were two female humans.

The human friends in turn studied the new arrivals. The dracken was strong and muscular. He had black eyes, tanned skin and short black hair. His black dragon-like wings were folded behind him. He looked very strong. On the contrary, the fairy had white feather wings complimenting his golden brown eyes, long white hair till his waist and slim build. He looked elegant. The elf was a contrast of his own with blue eyes, shoulder length light blue hair, slanted eyes and slender body. He looked energetic. But the relieving factor was that all three of them looked friendly.

"Miss Potter?" Segrace asked tentatively. Both females looked at him.

"Sirs, please remember your promise that you won't reveal whatever you see here." Dobby prompted behind them.

Segrace nodded in acceptance before speaking, "Who are you? What is happening here?"

"Oh we are angel guardians of Joy…"

"Just here to visit her once and safeguard her…"

"It is only our luck that we meet you three…"

"We've never met any other race with her before except goblins…"

"They are usually queer and are very very formal with us too…"

"Except Griphook…" Fred said.

"Except Griphook!" George nodded.

"And Smithwreck…"

"And Smithwreck!"

"And…"

"Oh stop it you too!" Neville cut them off. "Sorry about these too, they confuse more than they communicate. We are indeed friends from her previous school, just on a visit."

"Have you been 'visiting' every now and then?" Saelig asked them suspiciously, "Is that why she is so reclusive among us?"

"What makes you say that?" Neville asked threateningly.

Saelig raised his hands in defence, "Hey now! I asked that with no malice, just curiosity. It's just that I always wondered how she copes under her cloak all day out; what with all the degrading comments and pranks directed at her. Sorry!" he added the apology when he noticed the looks on the human's faces become hard.

Neville was the first to respond, "Before we talk more, I want you to tell me who among the two girls is Jocelyn."

The three allievos looked at the two girls. "How would we know?" Alano asked in confusion, "We never saw her till date."

"Deduce!" Both twins shrugged.

The three of them looked at the two girls. Just a moment passed before all three of them said "none", unintentionally together. They looked in surprise at each other.

The Weasley twins finally clapped with smiles.

"Well done!" Luna finally spoke, "You all passed the test! Please have a seat."

Daphne took out her wand and conjured a similar couch for the three, making them all sit in a circle. Alano, Drestoir, and Saelig settled down and looked at the funny humans.

"Well!" Alano dared to speak, "Where is Miss Potter?"

"JOY!" the twins wasted no time in standing up and calling their friend in a sing song voice. But when they saw Jocelyn come into the room covered in her cloak, they simultaneously slipped their footing and crashed in their seats, and burst out laughing. Even Luna smiled a little. On the other hand, Neville and Daphne were shocked; Daphne even had a hand on her mouth.

"Greetings Miss Potter!" Segrace greeted her before turning to her friends, "What happened?"

"What happened he asks…." Fred had tears coming out of his eyes.

"No wonder you are so curious…"

"there is no Joy in there.."

"just a fat lump of cloak…"

"Oh my! Joy…"

"You beat the extremes of hiding yourself…"

It took a stinging spell from Jocelyn to the twins before they could calm themselves. But that gave a chance for Daphne now. She stood up angrily, "Jocelyn Elaine Potter, remove that at once! Now!"

Jocelyn stepped back in fear, she had guesses these reactions, but could not dare herself to come before her co-allievos without the cloak. She shook her head. Before Daphne could charge on her, Luna placed a hand on her shoulder making her sit down. She went to Joy and led her to her seat between the girls. Only then she spoke, that too with the allievos.

"We need to have a serious talk right now. But before all that, remember your promise."

The elf, dracken and fairy nodded to Luna, eager themselves to finally see the human and know her. Luna turned to Jocelyn.

"Joy, stop fearing. Don't let it rule you. You are the bravest and fairest of all of us, so be fair to yourself first. This is not the way you want to spend the rest of your life now, is it? Remove this wall between you and the world."

Jocelyn finally steeled herself and pulled down her hood, revealing her face to the allievos. She was beautiful, the three allievos agreed to themselves, but since they had seen veelas and fairies and elves all their life, this did not affect their impression of her. What did was the expression on her face; it showed anticipation hidden behind the bravery, and care and softness in her terrified eyes.

"Nice to meet you, Miss Potter. I am Segrace Hiilgus Brinhat, a year senior to you and your neighbor. And your lunch partner if I may be bold."

"Alano Hasan Drestoir, we are co-allievos and occasionally sit beside each other. Nice to finally talk to you."

"Saelig Zorian Seamase, co-allievo and co-bencher too. Umm… If you allow me, I would like to apologize for our first meeting. My reminder of your parents and the insulting way I spoke was not intentional; I just wanted to tell you that I sympathize and that the humans should grieve for them too; and work for their own safety before just putting all burden on you. I am sorry."

Jocelyn nodded to each of their greetings before speaking softly, "Nice to meet you all too. I excuse you Mister Seamase; I myself was already frustrated by that point to take your dialogue at face value. My apologies, to all of you, for not introducing myself properly till now."

The friends watched this exchange in amusement, before the Daphne decided to interrupt, "So Joy! Care to tell us everything that you have been skipping in your letters?" she asked seriously.

"Ummm… I've skipped nothing."

"Oh is that so. Then explain the minor panic you've felt before inviting your co-students."

"Come on, I did not know it was them."

"So if it was anyone else, you would panic?" Neville interrogated.

"Yes… I mean, no… I mean, I don't know anyone else."

"Judging by the three introductions, you don't know anyone. Period."

"Well I am the only human here, it will take time." Jocelyn defended herself.

"To make friends maybe…." Fred mused.

"Definitely Not to make acquaintances." George finished.

"Guys leave it alone, please. We have guests here." Jocelyn pleaded them. The friends did not relent. Neville leaned forward, with his elbows on his knees.

"Joy, we came here to see you well and flourishing, not being pushed around and hiding. Please tell us, what is your situation here? We want our brave, kind and optimistic friend back."

Jocelyn was at loss for words. She did not want to worry her friends, definitely not in front of her classmates. God knows how they would react. She did not want to expose herself to the three allievos either. They all belonged to different races; the opinion they will spread will cover at least half the population of the school. Jocelyn was panicking; her breaths came out in short gasps as her magic reacted to her stress. The things in the room started shaking. To the utter surprise of the three allievos, two phoenixes flashed in front of Miss Potter and engulfed her in flames. She was absent when the flames subsided.

Alano sprang to his feet, bewildered "What just happened?"

Saelig was not far behind, "If I am not mistaken, those two birds were phoenixes. Why the hell are all of you so calm when your friend has been kidnapped by phoenixes? What is going on here?"

It was Segrace who kept his cool. He knew that phoenixes were birds of pure intentions and helping nature. That both of them came after the girl's magic escalated indicated that they were like her guards. And it definitely explained how Miss Potter seemed to heal so quick after every attack on her.

"Calm down", he said to his juniors.

"I will not CALM down. If you failed to notice, your neighbor has just been abducted…"

"She is okay now, she is calm, don't panic." Luna suddenly interrupted Saelig.

"What do you mean?" Alano asked.

"I mean that wherever she is now, she is calm; maybe just very ashamed and conflicted I guess."

"How do you know that?" Saelig collapsed in his seat. These humans were confusing him.

"Meet Luna Lovegod, the intuition specialist…" the twins pointed at her.

"Oh shut up!" Neville waved them off. "Those phoenixes live here. See…" he pointed to the bird-houses that had appeared, "They live with Joy and are her companions. Dobby!" he called the elf, "Please go and tell Joy that we are not upset or angry or anything with her. We just want her to come back, but she may take as much time as she needs to first calm down. If we leave before her coming back, we will let her know."

"Sure, Mister Longbottom." Dobby popped away. Then Neville and the rest turned to the three allievos sitting before them. Those three felt stiffened in their seats.

"Look" Neville started, "Joy is important to us, more like a family we cannot lose. We agreed with her moving away from Hogwarts because we could see that she was isolated, used and manipulated there without getting any satisfaction or love back. We six became a team, a unit that stuck together through all odds, challenges and happy moments. I know she won't be happy back there, but if she is suffering the same state here, please tell us. She has suffered all her life. From her relatives, from Voldemort, from the stupid masses, from students… you get the drift; yet she is still the amazing person who would jump into a fire just for the sake of those whom she cares. She already did a lot for us; we cannot see her like this."

Neville could not speak anymore, overwhelmed with memories and emotions. Daphne took over.

"Tell us her life here, however much you know."

Saelig was the one who started, "Well, I don't know how she deals with things for she is always hidden from view. I saw her first during the opening ceremony and then at her cottage. I did not mind living next to her, so I began chatting with her. It was inconsiderate of me to bring up her parents, but she was already wired enough; she slapped me and left. I moved away from this location then. After that I saw her only during classes. She is silent, talks only when asked to by Imparatos, never confronts others even if they try to rile her up, and always keeps to herself."

"She is brilliant at her practical though" Alano continued, "The theory work I've seen her work for, but the practical applications are easy for her. A few tries and she succeeds. What confuses me is that she never says anything when finished."

"Don't others notice that?"

Saelig frowned, "I am sorry to say this, but she always sits in the back. Me and Alano are the only ones who sit with her when possible, no one else. In fact, I've never seen her interact with anyone."

"Because of the abuse…." Segrace added after moment. This caught the attention of everyone in the room.

"She is abused. I saw many indicators of that, but did not put them in that category. I just assumed she is a shy and unconfident person, an easy pushover. But now that I think of it, I first met her all alone eating lunch in isolation. I had carried her to cottage after she had collapsed due to a prank played on her. I've seen her going to Okrag limping. I assumed that she was just having lunch elsewhere when she did not arrive some days. The list just goes on…"

Tears were glistening in Daphne's and Luna's eyes as they heard him confess. The whole group sat silent for a few minutes, summarizing and digesting what they learned. The twins had heard enough.

"Okay, let us make the evacuation plan." Fred spoke up.

"Hmmm… when do you think would be best guys?" George asked around. The other friends seemed to having similar intentions, for they all caught up to what they were saying.

"The first task is in a month. The professors will be busy. I bet we can do it next weekend. What luck it is that we have Hogsmeade allowed every weekend this year. Bless the foreign schools!" Neville said.

"Okay" agreed Fred, "The next weekend. The things can come later, Dobby will bring it. This week we have to somehow contact the goblins. They can do the construction."

"Our families would be no help, all are puppets of Dumbledore."

"Hey! Hey! Hey! Just wait a second." Shouted Alano, "What evacuation? What construction?"

"Oh, sorry I forgot about you." Daphne paused the discussion, "In all the talk, we actually forgot what you came here for. Will you tell us now?"

Alano looked at Saelig before answering, "We were considering rebuilding our cottages in a different location. Since Saelig here already liked this place, we came to ask for agreement from the already settled ones. Mister Brinhat has agreed. We need Miss Potter's approval."

"Oh that's cool. I am sure she will agree. I will tell her to send a message through Dobby just to reassure you. You can move in a week. If you will excuse us now…"

"Thank you." Alano stood up, "This makes thing much easier."

"Ummm… Alano, you are mistaking their statement. They mean that we can move here after this place has been vacated." Saelig was still sitting there stunned.

"Do you mean…?" Segrace caught on to his meaning.

"What am I missing?" Alano hadn't.

Saelig turned to the serious looking group now, "Please do not take her away."

"What!" exclaimed Alano, finally understanding the situation.

"Please, give Amictos another chance. It is the best school in the world." Alano continued.

"Oh Hogwarts says the same thing. What's the use of all the knowledge if you cannot share or use it? No thanks! She is brilliant as she is." Daphne snapped at them.

"Amictos takes in only those in whose magical limit crosses a certain threshold, teaches them to hold and control their magic. Miss Potter would suffer if she does not learn how." Segrace pointed out. This received an angry reaction from Luna. She spoke in a dangerous low voice; no one had heard her speak like that till date.

"Suffer you say? Would it be bad Mister Brinhat? Would it be worse than being gawked at one second and insulted the next? Would it be worse than being bitten by a basilisk for saving someone unworthy? Would it be worse than being ridiculed for being affected harshly by dementors? It certainly won't match being blamed and hurt for something you did not do, would it? Oh I would certainly agree with you if you can convince me it will be worse than being beaten and enslaved all her life, or being molested by her uncle and later her cousin since she was 10 years old."

"Oh god!" Saelig buried his head in his hands, "Please don't tell me she went through all that!"

"Telling it won't match to experiencing it now, would it? She has already suffered enough and beyond; no more. She has come out of all of it as the wonderful person she is, she will win over her magic too. I can sense that her situation will only get more difficult the longer she stays with your races. I am not requesting you, please leave so we can plan."

"Give us a chance." Alano suddenly spoke.

"One chance for us to show that not everyone dislikes her here. One chance to show that she can make friends even in most difficult environments. One chance for us to know her before she leaves the school. If it so happens that we don't agree with each other, we promise to contact you."

"Amictos is a great place for learning, currently shadowed by prejudices. If she stays, she would prove them all wrong." Segrace added his cent.

"Yeah yeah…" Fred said sarcastically, "Put that on her head too, why don't you? First she has to defeat Voldemort, then beat a troll, defend a school, fight a huge snake, combat dementors, see her godfathers die, and still it is not enough, right? Now she has to unite creatures of all kinds. NO thanks!" he huffed.

"I am not saying it that way. She does not have to do anything. All I feel is that her just being here will break many misconceptions, and bring different races together. It will be good for her if she fights too. If I observed her lacking something, it is self worth."

"But she has to…"

"I am not going anywhere." Jocelyn said from the doorway into the hall. Surprisingly, she had got rid of her cloak completely and was just wearing her t-shirt and jeans. "Now if would all come to the garden, lunch is served." She left after saying that. Everybody followed her.

"But Joy…"

"No Daphne. I've thought and pitied myself enough. Running away from problems will only pile them up for me. No more. I will face challenges and live my life my way. I have a few friends; I don't need to crave for more. If someone likes me, it will be for me and not for my great achievements that even I don't know of. If someone had expectations from me, they will have to fulfil mine before I even try to reach theirs. I just had enough living for others, living in fear of others; I want to live for me and mine."

Weasley twins started clapping, rejoicing this new Jocelyn as well as to break the tension.

"Well said!"

"Bravo!"

"Now that you mind is set, want to hear what happened with the goblet of fire?" Fred asked teasingly.

Joy finally smiled, "Sure. Let's eat outside and you can tell me. Ummm..." she looked at the allievos, "you may join us if you wish to."

All of them seated themselves in the wooden bench in the garden. As everybody dug into pizzas, pasta, cookies, bread, juices and chocolate, the twins narrated what happened last night. Jocelyn declined coming back, for she was a student of Hogwarts no more, and so will not bind herself to the contact. Everybody agreed.

The day was spent with tales of both schools. The friends enjoyed themselves and the elf, fairy and dracken got easily included in the group. The humans happily inspected the wings of the dracken and fairy, as well as got a demonstration of the elf's speed. Jocelyn accepted of her co-allievos becoming her new neighbors. For a heavy emotional start, the day ended joyfully well.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

How do you feel the meeting went? Do you wish the abused that Jocelyn faced included in the next chapter? Please let me know.

Coming up: Jocelyn in Amictos without hiding anymore.


	13. Life at Amictos till now: Snippets

**Author's Note:**

Hi guys and girls! On encouragement from **Lyn1991** , I have decided to add a few snippets of abuse that Jocelyn faces in Amictos.

I had a lot of scenes in mind, but finally selected the few in which we get introduced to some new characters as well. This way, I don't have to introduce them when I am in middle of the story.

This chapter is dedicated to my reviewers - **ThunderClaw03, Lyn1991, Dragonladysally, Dendule95, giovygio91,** **Fevendetta, Livebloodlove, Faery66**. Thank you for your support. Others, please do review your thoughts.

* * *

The three female elves of Jocelyn's year- Catherin, Selina and Nefira, were a tight knit group. They sat, ate and studied together and lived side by side. Catherin was the self proclaimed leader of the group and Selina was like a right hand to her. Nefira, on the other hand, was a timid elf who usually kept away from attention.

Catherin and Selina did not like the fact that there was a human with them. They had grown up hearing tales of humans cheating and deceiving, and why elves and other beings decided to hide away from them. So when the female human ignored them and did better than them in her studies, they assumed it was her showing off and grew irritated and harsh with her. They taunted her regularly, assured that she would soon show her true colors. It angered them when she did not show any reaction that they expected from her; in fact she remained stubbornly aloof.

"Hey Human, stop panting so hard in this class? This is only the first year. If you cannot even keep up with the simple exercises given by Imparato, you better drop this class next year. Stop showing off and trying to earn sympathy; you won't get any here." Catherine mocked Jocelyn when she saw her coming to Imparato Zeilo's class of hand-to-hand combat. She knew this class was the most difficult for the human, for the Imparato allowed no use of magic. Without that, the human's strength was pitiable.

Selina huffed at her when Jocelyn gave no response to Catherin's taunts.

"Let it be Catherin. Don't you see, she is deaf and dumb too. I don't know how she got in here. Having some power is not enough, you know. You need to have some skill too. The human seems to be lacking it. Pathetic!" Selina sneered at her.

Before the girls could continue more they heard the flap of wings, so they left Jocelyn alone.

"Gather round!" Imparato Zeilo announced.

"Very good. Allievos! Today I am going to start teaching you combat using hands. You will only use your hands for attack as well as defense. And remember, no use of magic."

Zeilo showed them a few movements and made them practice individually. When she was satisfied, she finally told them to mock dual in pairs. Catherin smirked when she saw everyone pairing themselves with their own kind and the human watching helplessly as she was left alone. Before Imparato paired her off with the odd-numbered were-people, she called the attention of Imparato Zeilo.

"Imparato Zeilo! May we include the human with us?"

"Okay, but remember that their strength is lesser than that of elves'."

"I promise Imparato. We will try our best."

Imparato Zeilo nodded and turned away to look at the all the groups in general. Saelig refrained from volunteering to pair with Jocelyn first, for he still remembered their first encounter and felt wary of approaching her again. He grimaced when Catherin called out to her rudely.

"Hey human! Come here, you will work with us."

"Good, now you will pair with Nefira here, she is the gentlest of us. Be very careful with her, won't you Nefira?"

Nefira nodded hesitantly and started practicing with Jocelyn. She was surprised to see the human using the movements taught efficiently. Since it was a mock duel, they were supposed to use no strength behind the moves, just mocking them so they could get used to using the moves. Jocelyn successfully blocked all the attacks which Nefira was unable to do so.

"Ummm… you need to raise your elbow higher when blocking my fist, else I will be able to touch your shoulder and you will be pushed back." Jocelyn said hesitantly in between their practice.

"Oh, thank you."

As their practice continued, Nefira and Jocelyn grew comfortable with each other, giving each other tips and encouragement. When Selina noticed this, she became very angry.

"What are you doing Nefira? She is a human, don't trust her. Oi you! If you think you are so good, come practice with me. Let me show you how to duel."

"But we are not supposed to…" The human spoke for the first time that day, but Selina cut her off.

"Oh come on. Imparato said to practice. Let's practice."

Without warning, Selina started her attacks on the human, which were defended well. Getting frustrated, she slowly started using her strength to fight her. In one such move she hit the human hard on her shoulder to push her back. It surprised her when she was pushed back to the ground instead. The human's magic had reacted to the assault. Alas! It drew the Imparato to them. The elves watched as the Imparato drew the human aside and scolded her. So when the human returned and contained her magic, it was inevitable for her to be hurt.

 _thwak!_

"Ahh!"

"Oh I am so sorry. Let me see. Ahh, its okay. Nothing's broken. Let's continue."

"Wait, my arm hurts…"

"Oh you can mend you teeny weeny smack later. Let's not waste the lesson time."

She swooped on the human again, ignoring her protests. This time she used her full strength and speed, and…

 _crack! crack!_

Imparato Zeilo immediately flew to them.

"What happened?"

"I am sorry madam. We were having a mock battle. It was getting interesting and I lost hold on my strength just a moment. She broke her arms."

"Oh! What to do with you Miss Jocelyn? How will you stand against anybody if you cannot even fight against controlled strength? Well, get up and go to the infirmary. Now! Don't waste time."

Catherin and Selina watched gleefully as the human walked away painfully, yet silently. Two boy elves – Saelig Seamase and Frian Rainders watched the human in pity as she walked away.

"We should not have let the girls take the human. They are too cruel to her." Frian commented.

"No, the human is just weak." Gresten, another male elf of their year spoke, "She should have backed away from even a mock battle with us."

The last male elf, Yoko, nodded, "I agree. She neither speaks nor acts. I don't know how humans survive. They are lucky that we elves don't want to rule over them."

Seamase watched the human go. _Why does she always remain silent?_

Riana Oplandon, Olivia Bristance and Lauda Dairalyn – the three female fairies of the first year were also cruel to Jocelyn. Unlike the elves, this was due to jealousy. The human had caught the attention of their beloved make fairly, Alano Drestoir. They were lucky to have a male fairy with them, the one out of the three currently in Amictos. But however much they tried, he interacted with the silent human more than he did with them. He even sat beside her in classes, never with them. And for all the attention he gave to her, the human had the audacity to remain silent, as if she was mocking them.

"Oh! How I wish Drestoir would sit with us." Olivia sighed. The three fairies were sitting together at a table in Okrag today for lunch. The customs class had just ended, and once again their favorite fairy sat with the human girl Jocelyn.

Lauda suddenly leaned forward, "Don't look right now, but the human has finally come to lunch. Why do you think she is late every day? Where indeed does she have her lunch anyway?"

Riana Scoffed, "I don't know. If I did not know better, I would say she is meeting her someone special. But really! Who would even come near her in Amictos?"

"Yeah I know." Agreed Olivia, "I would not have even cared if not for Drestoir. It's like she knowingly sits alone so he would sit with her. How fascinating it would be for her, meeting and sitting beside a handsome fairy. You do know that we are fantasy tales for humans, don't you?"

"Yeah whatever. Hey, are you two finished? Let's follow the human."

The three followed Jocelyn after she collected her food and left Okrag. The human walked quite some distance before she felt someone following her and turned around to face them.

"Hello Jocelyn!" Riana sneered at her.

"Where are going for lunch on such a lovely day?" added Olivia.

"Why are you following me?" the human asked.

"Oh, we just wanted to check if you are walking to Drestoir, you know, the fairy who sits beside you." Answered Lauda.

"No." Jocelyn shook her head, "I never met him outside class. I was just going for lunch by myself."

"Listen Human!" Riana finally had enough, "I don't care what your lies and excuses are, you are not to associate with our Drestoir; do you understand? He is too good for low lives like you."

Jocelyn just shrugged an _okay_ and turned to walk away. This angered Olivia. She stormed to the human girl and roughly spun her around. She tore the food out of her hands and stomped on it.

"If I see you sitting beside Drestoir, there will be hell to pay. Do you understand?"

"I do not invite him, he just sits wherever he wishes." Jocelyn protested. In response, Olivia flared her blue wings wide open and pushed the human back. "As we said, we don't care what excuses you make, do not interact with him. Girls! Let's give her a sample of the humiliations she would face. Of course, since we are in Osada, we cannot hurt you. But I can do this!"

She tripped Jocelyn to ground while holding her cloak and dress in her hands. As a result her dress tore off at her neck along with her cloak. Luckily, it did not unmask her. Then the two other girls dumped her books on the ground and stamped on her papers. This left Jocelyn sobbing silently as the fairies walked away.

This was the first time she missed lunch, with many others which followed.

Brinhats were one of the respected clans amongst the drackens. They were well known for their skill, loyalty and the basic fact that they were a warrior clan. Since he was a child, Segrace was taught the clan secrets as well as their ideals of commitment. Having his parents die protecting their charges only strengthened that idea. But the question still remained for him… who would he swear himself to?

"Goodmorning Brinhat! How are you doing today?" Laila, a first year dracken girl greeted him. There were no female drackens in his year, and of the three girls in the first year, Laila was the one who often pestered him.

"I am doing good, Miss Gailard. I wish you well as well."

"Thank you. What class do you have today?"

"Potions."

"Oh, good. I like that class, Imparato Randiel teaches well. Which is your favorite?"

"You ask this question every now and then, don't you? My answer is the same. I like learning and have no preference. And before you drag on this conversation, I still won't be your mail to the prince. Go to him or his friends yourself."

"They are never alone like you; always in groups. Aren't you his friend too? You need to be, you will swear yourself to him anyway."

Segrace stopped walking and turned to her, "We do not walk in the same circles as of now, so please stop hounding me just because I look like an easy target."

"Okay okay, sorry. It was worth a try. You are good with runes, right? Will you tutor me please?"

"I tutored you last week. If you need help understanding, then I will help you. But expecting someone to do your job for you is unacceptable. You need to work for yourself first."

"But even the human does it better than me. I don't like that. I can work hard later. I don't want to lag behind her."

"Then just go to her for tutoring…"

"You don't really mean it. Me? Go to a human? I would prefer failing to that. She must be a hideous person under that cloak, I am sure."

Just then the two other female drackens, Zoriana Selpauce and Sarahina Tornard joined them.

"What is she bothering you about this time? The prince or the lessons?" Zoriana asked.

"Oh come on you two. Even you lag behind along with me in runes. At least I am trying to get help in learning it."

"More like help in doing it…. I know about you Laila. Sarahina and I at least try the work ourselves. You will learn nothing if you keep making others do it for you."

"Oh, get lost. I will find someone else. I will not be bested by a stupid human and be ridiculed on top of it."

The other two girls apologized to Segrace for occupying his time and walked away. Segrace wondered why the human was such a recluse if she was good at her studies.

The goblin, dwarves and were-people of the first years kept to themselves, and away from Jocelyn. The centaurs, on the other hand, were gentle beings that could not help but pity watching the human struggle. There was difference in opinion among them too; while some wanted to help and befriend the human, others wanted to stay out of any business with the human. Serine and Folana were two of the four female centaurs who really felt for the human.

"That was cruel of him." Folana was angry at Imparato Cresall for treating Jocelyn so insultingly in their mind magic class.

"I agree." Serine said, "Compared to the rest, she has a better grasp on her magic. So what if her attempt to move that block broke it; everyone makes mistakes."

"I think the Imparato Cresall was right to scold her." Bark, a male centaur and their classmate, told them. "Just imagine what would happen if she loses control on her magic in critical times. It will be a disaster. Don't you agree, brother Driftwood?"

Driftwood shrugged, "While you are true, he was harsh on her. But maybe that is the way it is supposed to be done."

"You cannot conclude that. He never treats any other allievo that way." Folana countered.

"Folana, every single allievo here is selected because he or she has potential to control their magic. We are no different than the human, and yet none of us make such drastic mistakes."

"It was a learning error, and just maybe, she is more powerful than any of us. That's why her mistakes are bigger."

"I don't agree with that." Bark shook his head. "She is just a human."

"A human who is being ridiculed even by seniors." Serine had stopped walking and pointed out a scene to them.

Jocelyn was walking to Okrag when a senior spotted her. It was a dracken girl of second year, Illiana Rosald, who was a distant relative of the dracken prince, Kinwer Sendrin. He was sitting with her along with few more of her friends.

"Hey Kinwer, let us practice the lesson we learned today" Illiana said to her prince. Kinwer just shrugged, "Sure. Playing each other's victim again?"

"No no… Seeing you uncomfortable today was hard enough; I was thinking of the human….. over there."

"But we do not know their limit now, do we?"

"And that exactly was the purpose of the lesson, wasn't it. The spell goes from tingling to actual scratches as it is cast again and again. I am sure the human won't resist till that point. Let's find out how many repetitions she can bear."

Kinwer, though an arrogant person, did not enjoy hurting others unnecessarily.

"Fine, call her and ask her if we can."

"Why? We can observe from here."

"You mean cast at her without telling her? Sorry Illiana, I won't waste my magic just to satisfy your curiosity."

"But don't you want to know a human's capabilities."

"Not in this way…. Do what you wish, but do not drag me into this. I am retiring for the day. Good day!"

And he spread his green wings and took off towards his cottage. Illiana did not like this, but she went ahead with her plan anyway. She was tired of hearing of human's success in her classes and wanted to find out herself.

She concentrated on her magic, will and directions to her magic. Then she let the magic to the human the way her Imparato taught her today. This was just an indication spell, which can be used to send coded signals to your counterparts. But since it affects the target directly, using it many times will make then irritated. In used beyond their capability, it will even hurt them.

The first spell made the human stop in her tracks and look back. Illiana immediately turned her head away. Once the human started walking again, she did it again.

The human wiped at her sleeve as she walked.

Again…

The human stopped again. This time she looked around as if searching anyone. She must have missed Illiana for she started walking again.

Again…

This time the human did not look back.

"Now she isn't even looking back. She must have guessed someone casting at her. Want to join me?" Illiana commented to her friends. Two of them agreed. Thus started a series of spells at the human, who had stopped looking around and walked away silently. This was what the centaurs noticed. She did not flinch, did not whimper, nor did she stop nor increased her pace. But when she passed the centaurs, they could smell blood on her. Serine and Folana could not watch this anymore. They galloped to the seniors.

"Will you stop it?" Selina cried at them.

"What great examples of seniors we have!" Folana was angry, "I wish Osada would just throw you out."

"What are you newbies talking about?" Iliana was confused at them.

"What are we talking about? You are casting spells at the human without her permission. What joy do you get in hurting her like that?"

"Hurting her?" another senior male dracken, Atticus, was now worried, "We were just testing her limits. I agree I am confused that she was still not giving any reaction. We had agreed to stop the moment she showed any pain."

"Pain?!" Selina shook her head, "Did you warn her of the spell? NO! She was bleeding all over when she passed us. Say what you want to yourself; doesn't change your cruelty."

"You are unworthy of the magic gifted to you if this is how you will use it."

The two centaurs turned away, leaving the seniors shocked and ashamed.

* * *

 **Auhtors's Note:**

Did you like this chapter? Please review...

The next chapter will come up soon. I was away visiting my cousin's marraige, hence the delay.

Coming up: Jocelyn without a mask, and the first task at Hogwarts.


	14. Dragons - I

The first year Allievos arrived in their class and went to their respective classmates. Some studied ahead, some gossiped.

"So, how was your day yesterday …"

"Did you know …"

"I mean why would he …"

"figure out how to draw that rune …"

!

!

Pin Drop Silence!

All the first year allievos stared at the allievo who just entered the runes classroom. The human… without her cloak. The centaurs were the first to recover. They nodded politely to her, which she returned with a short nod, and they went back to their discussion. This broke the dam on silence and all the class fell back into chatter, many regarding the human and some not.

As soon as Jocelyn took her seat, Riana walked to her.

"Hey human!"

Jocelyn nodded once at her indifferently and went back to her book. This irritated the fairy.

"Look at me when I am speaking to you, human."

Jocelyn's closed her eyes a moment, praying god for patience and courage, before she looked into the fairy's eyes.

"Good!" Riana smirked. "Good to see you are learning to listen. Now, why have you taken off your cloak? Finally decided that you won't match us in beauty anyway? You should not have worn it the first place; you just raised the expectations of everyone as to how you look. Now everyone would be disappointed. Hey look at me when I am speaking…"

Jocelyn had gone back to her book after listening to the beginning of her speech. Just because she had decided not to hide anymore does not mean that she would suddenly change her behavior. Having the human ignoring her grated on the fairy's nerves.

"Look at me stupid arrogant…" Her rant abruptly cut off when she heard a voice behind her.

"Excuse me."

It was her beloved fairy, Alano. She quickly turned around and spoke in a sweet voice.

"Good morning Drestoir, how are you doing today?"

"I am good, thank you Miss Oplandon."

"Oh you may call me just Riana, I always tell you."

He smiled a tight smile at her, "its okay. Will you let me through, please?"

She realized she was standing in the way to the last row.

"Oh sure. But I still don't understand why you sit beside that human. Oh, see there, she has finally shown her face. I wonder why she was hiding. Anyway, you are always welcome to sit beside me. There's lot of space between us fairies."

He again gave a small smile, "Thank you" Then he turned to Miss Potter who was studiously ignoring whatever was happening around her.

"Goodmorning Miss Potter!"

Jocelyn greeted him same as she greeted the previous fairy; with just a nod. She was still a wary of him. The time spent with him yesterday seemed like a dream. It was hard to believe that anyone here wanted to live near her or actually wanted to spend time with her. Of course, she did not talk much last day, but she did get the chance to see the happy nature of the three allievos.

"What are you reading?"

"Revising last week's lesson."

"Oh, that was a good one. I liked the time-delay rune."

Jocelyn wanted to chat with him like her friends naturally did yesterday. Many funny replies occurred to her that she would usually give to her friends, but she was not close with guy to be able to say them. So she just shrugged and nodded before returning to her book. Alano opened his mouth to speak again, to have a simple conversation, but was interrupted by another fairy that just came in and joined the previous one.

"Goodmorning Drestoir! Oh my, the human finally did it! The caterpillar finally emerged from her cocoon. But I see no butterfly anywhere." She snickered as Jocelyn's shoulder stiffened. "Now that your curiosity is sated, come and sit with us. I am far better than her in company. She is dumb."

"Silence is just what I need in class, Miss Olivia Bristance. Please refrain from deciding my choices for me." Alano said seriously, irritated with her dialogues. No wonder Miss Potter did not feel comfortable anywhere. Even he had to strain himself from giving a negative expression.

"Sorry!" Olivia stepped down, "Where were you yesterday? You left after the confrontation with the elves and never came back. Did that elf hurt you?"

"No, I attended a party with him and had a lot of fun."

"Where did you go? That too with an elf? Who would welcome you together?"

"Someone who does not distinguish people based on races." Saelig said from behind her. He squeezed his way between the stunned fairies and took his seat beside Alano.

"Good morning Alano! Goodmorning Miss Potter! How are you both doing today?"

Jocelyn just nodded again.

Saelig turned to Alano, "So could you finish the challenge that Imparato gave us last week?"

"So so… It is still not working as well as I want it to."

"Mine does, but it takes a lot of energy, so not everyone would be able to use it." He noticed the two fairies still standing there, fuming.

"Yes?"

"You are not worthy enough to sit beside our Drestoir." She growled.

"I can sit wherever I want. Now, please, will you go back to your seats? Unlike you, I like to study instead of gossiping."

Before she could argue more, the Imparato arrived.

"Please settle down allievos." Imparato Randsey announced, forcing the two fairies back into their seats. Saelig and Alano both sighed at the same time. Miss Potter subtly covering her lips with her hands caught his attention.

"Told you they are hard work." Alano whispered. He felt glad to see Saelig smiling and Miss Potter looking away and biting her lower lip to hold her smile. It felt good to have normal people around.

After the lesson, Jocelyn walked to Okrag and then to the banyan tree as usual. But when she reached there, Mister Brinhat was already there. This was not anything special; the unusual was him waiting for her to join him for lunch. When she arrived there, he smiled at her.

"Good afternoon, Miss Potter. Shall we have lunch together?"

Jocelyn was stunned. The dracken seemed to be taking his promise seriously. She jerked a nod and shivered slightly as she walked forward and sat with him. Segrace noticed this and felt pity for the poor girl for having a tough life; experiences that made her even hesitate to accept a simple invitation for company.

"Good afternoon!" Jocelyn said shyly. She fidgeted in her place. When the dracken started opening his parcel, she followed his example.

"So how was your class today?"

"Good?"

"Oh, what did they teach you?"

"Time delay runes."

Segrace could understand that Jocelyn was feeling uncomfortable talking to him, so he went back to his food. There was an awkward tension between them, keeping both of them silent. They just sat there till they heard the warning bell ring.

Both said farewell and parted to go to their classes. Jocelyn was confused? What was with those three? Just because they were neighbors did not make them best of friends now, did it? They were of different races, they did not bother with her till now; so why now?

That confusion turned into alarm when she reached the class; Mister Drestoir and Mister Seamase both were sitting together and there was an empty seat by them. Saelig noticed her and subtly pointed the seat to her, implying they had spared the seat for her. Them sitting beside her was one thing; it was their choice. But not this. The two allievos were dismayed when they saw Jocelyn shaking her head and sitting on the other end of the class.

That evening after the classes, Saelig and Alano walked back talking to each other; yet still just a few steps behind Jocelyn. She was, of course, very much aware of the two, as well as the stares of many. The moment she reached the tree line of Osada, she turned to them, looked at them in suspicion, and transported back to her cottage.

Saelig and Alano looked at each other and sighed. Earning her trust was going to be tough.

In Hogwarts, a different concern emerged with Jocelyn's friends. A week before the first task, on a weekend, they rushed to a hidden spot in the woods to Hogsmeade and immediately called for Fawkes to take them to Jocelyn. A confused Fawkes flashed them away.

Jocelyn was peacefully working in her garden when she was startled out of her heart.

"JOY!" All of her friends shouted at once at her. She whipped her head to find her five friends standing at the entrance with Fawkes. Her face broke into a big smile as she rushed to them immediately. She held Luna's hand as she looked at all of them.

"Oh my god! Guys! You never gave me a notice that you would come today. Is this a surprise visit? Can you stay the whole day? How are you? How is your girlfriend Nev? How…"

"Whoa!"

"Stop"

"Pause"

"Halt"

"Cease"

"Hold"

"Cold Turkey!"

Fred paused and looked at George in confusion, "Cold turkey?" George just shrugged.

Neville smiled at her, "Well, we it's been long since we saw you."

Jocelyn nodded happily and ushered them all to the garden bench. She asked Dobby to bring out snacks and join them. Once even Hedwig was with them, they all sat down and chatted about their days till now. Listening to allievos reactions to seeing her out of cloak was funny, but they were also sad to know that it did not change their attitude towards Joy any. Finally after running out of gossip, Daphne brought up the real reason for their visit.

"Joy, by any chance, do you know how to deal with dragons?"

"Dragons?" Jocelyn asked in confusion.

"Yes dragons." Daphne nodded.

Jocelyn's eyes widened in understanding and astonishment, "Dragons!?"

"Yes dragons." Daphne replied in disappointment.

"Dragons!" Jocelyn raised her hands in defeat.

"Yes dragons." Daphne answered again.

"Oi stop it you two." Neville interrupted, "Don't do another Weasley twins."

The group laughed before Jocelyn asked seriously, "Are you sure they are bringing dragons to a school, Daphne?"

"Yes Joy, we saw them ourselves. That too, mothering dragons with their eggs. Apparently the contestants will have to retrieve something from them. I can deduce it will be kept among the eggs, and they will have to cross the mother… hey what happened?"

Jocelyn had turned white as sheet as she listened to Daphne, "Are they idiots? Who brings a mothering dragon out of her nest?" She was livid. She got up from her seat and started pacing.

"I agree" Fred nodded, "They are not the brightest of bulbs. How do they expect children to fight a dragon…"

"You misunderstood Fred" Luna interrupted him, "Joy is worried about the dragon."

"Of course I am!" Jocelyn sat down in her place.

"Evading the dragon is possible; the question is how we do it. But really, the dragons came with the keepers just because their eggs were kidnapped. Can you be certain that none of the eggs will be destroyed during the competition? How do you think the dragons would feel then? Can you imagine the destruction that would follow when the mothers realize that their babies have been killed even before they are born? Would you feel good if your kids were put in harm's way?"

"When you put it that way, now I feel bad that I like omelets. Now I won't be able to eat one again." George groaned.

"Look George, that is different. The world runs on the principle that one being survives on other. Even plants are beings. We can crack an egg for an omelet or kill a chicken to eat it. But crushing the kids of a powerful sentient being just for fun; this will not end well. The wizarding world has gone mental, I say. Voldemort seems to have killed all the good ones, for those who remain are utter imbeciles."

"Okay okay, calm down Joy. We get it. You are not pleased." Neville waved his hand.

"I'm sorry." Jocelyn said, "Well what do you want to know."

Neville sighed, "After your rant, my question seems small. I just want to help Fleur in her competition since her school mates are jealous of her and don't interact well with her; let alone help."

"Oh the curse of being a veela." Fred shook his head.

"Will you wait here as I go and search the library?"

"Sure Joy. Bring some books and we will all research together. Just like old times."

Jocelyn smiled at them and went to the library through the Transito. The five friends made themselves comfortable, joking and laughing as Dobby and the phoenixes told them tales of Amictos.

Jocelyn returned in an hour with a lot of books about dragons. The group then sat together to identify the type of dragons they saw and their characteristics. It was time for them to leave soon, so Jocelyn bade them farewell; with the promise that she will contact them soon after going through the books.

That evening, after long hours of study, Jocelyn decided to take a break. She was always curious about what lied in the forests that surrounded Osada. Segrace noticed her walking towards the forest. He became curious about it and decided to go with her. Maybe they could develop a tentative friendship today.

"Good evening Miss Potter!"

Jocelyn immediately spun around in defense, and relaxed a bit when she noticed it was the neighbor dracken. She nodded at him.

"May I ask where are you going?"

"Umm… just into the trees." She shifted on her feet.

"Hey, please don't be nervous. I am not scolding or reporting you to anyone. I was just curious. If you don't mind, may I accompany you?"

Jocelyn was in a fix, but agreed his company anyway. Both of them started on their way into the trees. The walk was pleasant with beautiful views and cool wind. But between the two, the atmosphere was awkward. Segrace decided to break it.

"How are your classes?"

She looked at him, but immediately ducked her head, "Good."

"I heard that you are doing very well in classes."

"Who told you?"

"Your classmates, Alano and Saelig. They are not troubling you now, are they? Do you find them good enough as neighbors?"

"They moved?"

"Yes, the very next day after asking you. In fact, they live beside me. They are still not sure how to build their cottage. It is hilarious to watch them rebuild their cottage every week, yet complain about something missing."

Jocelyn smiled at little. Encouraged by it, Segrace continued.

"So when are your friends coming here again. Will you tell me if they come? I would like to meet them again. They are a jolly bunch."

"Why?" Jocelyn became suspicious as to why would he say so.

"Don't take me wrong. I like them. They care for you very much to be willing to come just to visit you."

"Yeah… I still wonder why?" She mumbled to herself, but the dracken heard her. She shook her head and looked at him.

"They were here today."

"Oh, anything that you could share with me?"

Jocelyn thought what she could tell him. She wondered if he knew about the dragons.

"Do you know how to get past a dragon; particularly a Chinese Fireball, a Welsh Green Dragon and a Hungarian Horntail? We've been researching today and….. Wow!"

Her voice trailed off as she took in the view in front of her. They had walked into a landscape between the trees. There was a lake in between, which was surrounded by meadow full of green grass and colorful flowers. Here and there, there were trees by the lake, and the forest grew as the boundary.

Segrace watched as Jocelyn walked into the meadow in a daze, taking in the beauty of the scenery. It looked peaceful and enchanting. He told himself that he should have explored the school more instead of staying cooped in his cottage. Smiling, he joined her near the lake at the base of a tree.

"So dragons?"

"Huh? Oh right, do you know how to get past dragons?"

"Why dragons?"

"Hogwarts is hosting the Triwizard championship, and the first task is getting past mothering dragons."

"Mothers? With her eggs?" At Jocelyn's nod, he exhaled, "do they realize that if even one of them breaks, the mother would go on a rampage and destroy everything nearby."

"I do. I am worried about them too. But I have a plan for that. Now it is the competition I am worrying about."

"Okay, I'll tell you what I know. Dragons in general have no weak point. If you want to get past them, you need to attack their weaknesses. Hungarian Horntail, that dragon is a very good fighter. But they are not aggressive. If you face that dragon, she will judge the danger that you would posses before attacking you, especially since she has eggs to protect. So one needs to be calm in front of them and not provoke them. The best way to deal with them is to grow familiarity with them and earn their trust."

"No time for that."

"I agree, so the next best thing is…" And he continued to explain the different things he knew about the dragons.

"How do you know so much?"

"We are a warrior clan Jocelyn. We were taught these by our elders. For us, these are basic knowledge."

"Oh… good for you. Did you come across dragons anytime?"

"Me? No. Though I wish I could see them. They are fascinating. By the way, what plan do you have regarding them?"

"Umm, promise you won't tell anyone or ridicule me?"

Segrace smiled at her, "I promise."

"I plan to go them and explain what the situation is."

"To their keepers? Don't they already know the situation? Wait… do you mean the dragons?"

Jocelyn looked away and nodded.

"How will you do that?"

"I don't know, but I feel that I can."

"And you are going to follow it?"

Jocelyn nodded again, "Look I know all this sounds silly but…"

"Hey hey, don't panic. I trust you know what you are saying." After a pause, he spoke again, "Can I come with you?"

Jocelyn's head whipped towards him, eyes wide, "What?"

"I want to come to the dragons too. I always wanted to see one."

"But.. but.."

"I won't bother you or your friends. I'll just watch from a distance."

"That's not the issue. What if someone sees you? Humans don't know the existence of drackens."

"Ah about that, don't worry. Watch!"

To Jocelyn's surprise, Segrace's wings started retracting and soon, they were not there."

"Wow! How did you do that?"

"Oh every dracken and fairy can do that, if they train themselves how to. I was taught this since I was a child."

"So I did not imagine that. Your wings are actually bigger than what you show around."

"How do you know that?"

"Oh… sorry… I saw you when you first arrived in Osada this year."

"It's okay. I was just surprised. So can I come with you?"

"Okay, which day do you want to come?"

"What do you mean which day? You are no going every day, are you?"

Jocelyn hung her head as she nodded. _He must think I am crazy for doing all this!_

But Segrace was thinking no such things. He was actually commending her caring nature. So after discussing their plans, they went back to their cottages. That night, Jocelyn contacted her friends and told them how to deal with dragons. The friends were very disappointed to learn that she would come to the dragons, but they will be unable to accompany her. They wished her the best of luck and promised that they would look into appropriate spells for dealing with the dragon.

That night, Segrace, Jocelyn, Dobby and the two phoenixes flashed to the grounds of Hogwarts. Immediately, they could hear the rumbling dragons behind the trees. Cautiously, they walked through the trees and came across an opening. There were three dragons in their cages along with their eggs. The keepers and care-takers were housed in tents a bit away from the dragons. There were two keepers patrolling around the cages.

"What is the plan, Miss Joy?" Dobby whispered. He was excited to be on a secret mission with his Mistress.

"This is a sedative gas that muggles use to induce sleep. Dobby, you need to release it in the tents. I will have to spell those two keepers asleep."

Dobby nodded and popped away. Jocelyn concentrated on her power, accumulating it before she drew the necessary runes in the air with her hands. The power released and the spell hit one of the guards. The other guard was just turning around. Before she could prepare, another spell hit him and he too fell asleep. She looked aside to see Segrace smiling at her. She nodded and looked at Fawkes.

"Fawkes, please sense around and tell me if there is anyone nearby."

Fawkes closed his eyes for a moment and then shook his head. That assured, Jocelyn started moving towards the cages, Dobby popping again beside her.

"Gracious! Dragons are truly marvelous beings." Segrace whispered in awe. The dragons heard him and woke up. While the Hungarian Horntail remained crouched by her eggs, the other two sprang to their feet and all three started growling. Luckily for them, there were strong silencing charms around the clearing to keep the people outside from listening to the dragons. Hedwig and Fawkes started singing to them.

Jocelyn did nothing; she just sat down in front of the dragons. Segrace looked at her in confusion before he too followed course and sat down in front of them. That night they just looked at the dragons, giving them an opportunity to know the people before them. It was Monday morning.

The Monday classes were difficult for Segrace. It was only due to his prior training that he was able to concentrate at all in class. The same could not be said for Jocelyn. Words flew over her head, ingredients slipped her fingers, she was caught staring into space, and so on. When it was time that night, Segrace knocked on her door, only to find Jocelyn sleeping on her couch with a book in her hand. Dobby shushed him.

"She has no sleep since yesterday, Mister Brinhat. However much we forced her, she refused to sleep. Please see if you can convince her otherwise she'll fall ill."

Segrace nodded and asked Dobby to wake her up.

"What… Oh no, what time is it?" Jocelyn woke up with a start.

"Miss. Potter, don't panic, we have to go now. Are you awake enough to do this? Dragons don't trust easily. Once we lose that, it is very hard to regain."

"Thank you. I am ready. Hedwig, shall we?"

After putting the keepers to sleep once more, the group again approached the dragons. They were awake today waiting for them. The phoenixes once again started their song. Today, the dragons were cautious yet calm. The mothers wanted to know what the odd pair of human, dracken and house-elf wanted. The presence of two phoenixes assured them that interacting with them was safe.

Segrace was curious to see what Miss. Potter had planned for today. He was very much surprised when he learned what it was.

"Dobby! Are you scared of dragons?"

"Miss Joy? Why are you asking so? Dragons are ferocious beings. Anyone would be afraid of them."

"I am not asking about when they are attacking you. I am asking if you can take me to them, and bring me back if the need comes."

"What!" Both Segrace and Dobby were shocked.

"Yes" Jocelyn nodded calmly, "You will have to take me to the dragon inside the cage. If the dragon becomes angry, you will have to bring me back. Can I rely on you? It is not matter of pride or ability, just if you can dare to do that. If not, we will think of another way."

"Miss Joy is being kind to Dobby. Yes Miss Joy, you can rely on me."

"It is very dangerous, Miss Potter. Have you thought it through?" Segrace warned her.

"Yes Mr. Brinhat. Trust me. I need your help. Look at them and tell me which dragon is least aggressive?"

Segrace did as asked, "I believe it to be the Welsh Green Dragon."

"Thank you. Hedwig!" the phoenix flew down to Jocelyn shoulders. "Let's go Dobby!"

The said dragon was watching the three carefully. What were they talking? What are they here for? She did see that they had put the keepers to sleep. She saw the white phoenix land on the human girl's shoulder and then the house-elf holding her hand. The next moment, they popped and landed inside her cage. She sprung back over her eggs, growling. No one would take her little ones. The growling did not seem to have scared the intruders. The house-elf popped away and the white phoenix settled by in a corner. The dracken and the golden phoenix were watching from outside. The dragon stopped growling and cocked her head to a side as she watched the human sit down and close her eyes. Suddenly she felt a foreign thought coming to her. She growled when she realized that the human was trying to access her mind. How dare she? The dragon crouched and prepared to attack. Many humans had tried this on their race, to try to control them and tame them. Every one of them had died a very painful death. Some due to dragon attacking their body and some attacking their mind. And that's what she would do.

The dragon attacked Jocelyn through the mental link that she was trying to make. Jocelyn shrieked as unbearable pain suddenly filled her senses. But she did not cut the link. She persisted, and let the dragon completely into her mind.

The dragon wanted to see how who had sent this pitiable human to defeat her. Instead, all she viewed was the human's life, where she lived, and how she just wanted to help. She immediately stopped her assault and grazed through her memories. Satisfied she let go of the human, who had collapsed on the floor by now. The dracken had rushed to the cage, but neither the house-elf nor the phoenixes were allowed him in. She got up, walked to the human, and nuzzled her with her nose, wishing to see if she had injured her. The human opened her watery eyes and smiled at her. Then they both talked.

It was early morning when Segrace and Jocelyn flashed back into Jocelyn's cottage. Jocelyn sighed and slumped into the cottage as Dobby promised to bring them some water. In the instant he returned, Jocelyn was already asleep. Segrace shook his head. Who knew a young human could tame a dragon. That too in such a short time, in a technique that was unheard of till now. He took a glass of water from Dobby and sat down on one of the couch. Before he knew it, he fell asleep. This was Tuesday morning.

Segrace woke up suddenly and found himself in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar room. His warrior instincts set in, but then he realized that he must be in Miss Potter's cottage. He cautiously walked out to the dining hall. Miss Potter was there, pouring over a book; many other placed beside on the table. When he entered, she immediately looked up.

"Good evening Mister Brinhat. I am sorry for making you miss your class today. I fell asleep too and could not wake you up in time…"

"Miss Potter, Miss Potter, please don't worry. Missing a class will not be such a catastrophe. What are you reading?"

"Oh this? I am trying to find a rune, or create one. But I am totally confused. If I put this here, it won't switch. If I…"

"You are rambling again. Did you sleep?"

"The whole morning."

"So did you go to the afternoon class?"

"No, I have to introduce this rune today. The dragons will have to get used to it."

"Let me help." He sat on the opposite side and both of them flicked through the books. But it was past dinner and they still could not find the required rune."

"I wish I could just ask someone." Jocelyn slumped in her chair with her head on the table.

"Why didn't I think of that? Shall we go to Imparato Randsey?"

She shook her head with her still down, "I missed his class today. All the Imparatos dislike me anyway."

"Why…" he started to ask her, but she shook her head, He let the question be.

"Then shall I go and ask him?"

"I don't think you will be welcome either, especially at this time and with a rule-breaking reason. Tell me someone else who can give us permission to create mischief."

"No one can cross the headmaster, but otherwise no one is above anyone else…. What?"

The moment he said headmaster, Jocelyn's head has snapped up and a smile lit her face.

"Come on, we are going to headmaster Grendall!"

"Our headmaster? No no, not him… wait… listen to me. He must be busy…"

But Jocelyn did not hear any of his objections. She called Dobby and made him pack a treat. She called out to Fawkes and Hedwig, who appeared immediately.

"Wait… you are going to take the phoenixes too? Does he know about them? What if…"

Jocelyn turned to him and cut him off, "Mister Brinhat, thank you for giving me the wonderful suggestion. Please if you do not want to come, then I won't wrong you for it. It is your choice. You have given company to a human the past three days, which is more than anyone has done for me throughout Amictos. So thank you again. Tell me if you do not wish to accompany me, I will agree."

Segrace was shocked. Miss Potter never talked this much in front of him. These three days were the first time he saw her determination, her passion, her endurance, her capability and her ingenuity. She was an honest, caring and genuine person; qualities he always looked for in friendship.

"Miss Potter, I don't leave my tasks unfinished. I see them to completion. I will come with you."

Jocelyn gave him an honest smile. She turned to Dobby.

"Dobby, please go to the headmaster if he is within Amictos. Ask him if he has time for helping two allievos figure a rune out."

Dobby nodded and popped away. He returned in a minute and said that the headmaster would meet them now. Jocelyn and Segrace flashed away the next moment.

They arrived outside a small two story cottage. It was surrounded by trees on all sides, with a pathway leading to the door. The door was open, and as they reached it, the headmaster called them in.

"Ah Jocelyn and Mister Brinhat, please come in."

They entered into a cozy hall, with sofa seating all around and stairs leading upstairs. What they could conclude was that Headmaster used downstairs for meetings while upstairs as his residence.

"Please sit down. May I presume that what you have come for is urgent, based on the time and the treat?"

"Yes sir" replied Jocelyn. Segrace was meeting the headmaster face to face for the first time. So he decided to remain silent. That was not the case with Jocelyn, who had visits from the headmaster form time to time. One can say that they had grown fond of each other.

"Hedwig! Fawkes! So nice to see you again. Help yourself if you want to", he pointed to a plate of fruits placed on the table.

As the birds busied themselves, he turned to his allievos. Jocelyn took a deep breath and started explaining the whole scenario - her friends visit, her name coming out of goblet, Dumbledore searching for her, first task being mothering dragons, and her worries about what would be the consequences if the dragons get angry.

"So what is it that you want from me? As it is, I see no potential danger to you. I promised you safety and I will provide that to you."

"I know sir. I want to keep my friends and the eggs safe."

"Ah a noble goal. Do you want me to accompany you to the dragons?"

"We already went to them the last two nights. I want your help in a rune. I want one which would replace the eggs with fake ones and place the real ones somewhere else; but only on the command of the dragon, like touching it with her claw or nose or something. Can we do that sir?"

"Ah a challenge, I love those. Do you have a parchment?"

"Here sir." Segrace forwarded one. For all the power he had heard headmaster had, he never expected him to be so laidback.

"Ok, do you want an exchange one or just a transfer one?"

"Both please… I don't know which the dragons would agree to."

"You can talk to them?" the headmaster looked up in surprise.

"Superficially… it was like sending feelings and images yesterday." Segrace thought he should reconfigure everything about Miss Potter. No one had surprised him so much till now.

"I will ask you how you did that later. Now, here they are! This one will exchange the eggs with whatever has been placed on a duplicate anywhere else. You need a drop of blood to make them a pair. Be careful that one pair should have unique drop of blood to another. Since we have to key it to the dragons touch anyway, if you can convince the dragon to share two drops of blood, then your energy problems are solved too."

At their looks of confusion, he explained, "Blood has power, magical blood much more so. It carries the essence of life for any being, and that is power. This rune does require a lot of power, and if you can use the dragon's blood, that problem is solved."

"But sir, I've heard of switching spells, they don't require so much energy?" Jocelyn enquired.

"Of course, those are instantaneous and without barrier of wards. In this case, they have to pass a number of powerful wards, maybe cross a lot of distance, and yet keep the items safe. That requires more power."

After demonstrating the runes and their working, Serio made one request of Jocelyn, "If the dragons want to leave the sanctuary and birth their kids somewhere else safe, please tell them they are welcome here. Amictos would remove any tracking charms on them anyway. Also, if I understand dragons well, they must be displeased with the sanctuary keepers."

Agreeing with it, the two allievos thanked the headmaster and flashed to the dragons. After stunning the keepers to sleep, Jocelyn once again flashed to the Welsh Green Dragon and sat before her in the cage. This time the dragon did not attack her, and they started talking. Segrace, who was sitting in front of the cages, started chatting with Dobby.

"Dobby, where did Jocelyn learn to communicate with dragons?"

"It is not just dragons sir; it is possible to communicate with any living being by sending them your thoughts. Though they would not understand our language images and feelings are understood by anyone."

"Oh and where did she learn it?"

"She started learning it with her godfathers before they were killed. Please don't ask me to elaborate; it is not my secret to tell."

"Okay, is she always so smart with everything? She never shows it in Amictos. I can understand her desire to not stand out there. Will you tell me how she is when in comfortable surroundings?"

"Why does Mister Brinhat wants to know?"

"Because she showed a completely different personality in the last three days compared to the number of months passed. We sit at lunch together usually; she never talks, never complains, nothing. So I want to know the person behind the mask."

"Miss Joy will kill me for this, but she did say I was free to make my own decisions. Please note it, if you use whatever I am telling you wrongly, then you will learn the wrath of a house-elf, not to mention the phoenixes."

Segrace nodded.

"Miss Joy is a very gentle and caring person. I've never heard her speak badly of anyone. She never stands back when someone is in danger. She strives to make those cares about happy, and would go any lengths to achieve that. She is brave, smart and a resourceful person. That said, she has no self-confidence, no self-worth and always thinks anyone is better than her; that she deserves neither love nor care. She is afraid of touch; she still shivers even if her friends shake her hands. We all are trying to make her overcome that, but are unsuccessful so far."

"Why is she so?"

"That I am not supposed to tell. But since her friends already told you last time, I can safely tell you that it is because of her relatives she spent her childhood with."

Jocelyn and Hedwig flashed back to them, and excitement was shining in their eyes.

"She agreed for the exchange and powering the rune with her blood. But we have to show a demo first. Dobby! Where is that sheet?"

Dobby popped with a sheet charmed against harm.

"Segrace, are you fairly good at runes?"

He nodded in amusement.

"Okay, here is the rune diagram. You draw one and I will draw another."

Both of them sat together drawing the required runes on the sheet. Once done, she asked him to show the working of the rune to the dragon while she conferred with the other two. Thus went that night, by the end of which all three dragons were convinced that these kids meant them no harm, only protection. They returned home Wednesday morning, content.

Again that night, they spent the time drawing the runes and showing how to use it to the dragons. Thursday night, they actually charmed the sheet invisible to all but the dragon and placed it so as to touch all the eggs. They tested it that night, and confirmed that the eggs would exchange over any distance. This was a tensed experiment, and they were very careful while testing the actual eggs.

Friday morning, they were caught at Amictos.

* * *

 **Author's note:**

It ain't over yet, but the chapter was getting too long, so I stopped here. Please tell me what your thoughts are?

Coming up: Dragons in the tournament.


	15. Dragons - II

They had just flashed back from Hogwarts when there was a knock on the door. Jocelyn opened it to see two drackens at her door, her classmate Laila Gailard and Imparato Randsey.

"Goodmorning Miss Potter. May we come in?"

"Goodmorning sir. Please come in. Goodmorning Miss Gailard."

Laila just huffed as she came inside.

"Would you like some tea?"

"This is not a social call, Miss Potter" Laila said in a haughty tone, but Imparato stalled her from continuing.

"Miss Potter, Miss Gailard complains that you have been influencing your senior Mister Brinhat all week. She says he has not been social all week, nor he had answered his door all week, even if he is inside. May I know why you are turning him against his friends?"

"Sir, I haven't done anything. Why are you blaming it on me?"

"Because I have seen both of you together. You do not associate with anyone, and suddenly you are having lunch with him and he is defending you against us. Who else should I blame?" Laila spat at her.

"Imparato Randsey, please." Jocelyn turned to him, "I have been having my lunch with him every day since the beginning. I do not associate with him any other time."

"Then what have you been talking about the whole week?"

"Sir?"

"I have observed Mister Brinhat pouring over runes not related to his class work, and I have noticed his distraction this week. Understand that drackens are not like humans. Don't try to create rift among them."

Jocelyn did not know what to say. This was ridiculous. She did not even understand what they were blaming her for, nor could she tell them the truth without putting mister Brinhat in trouble.

"May I know why are you disturbing someone early in the morning regarding me without even consulting me first?" Jocelyn sighed in defeat when she heard mister Brinhat behind her. She did not want him involved in this.

"Mister Brinhat! What are you doing here at this time of the day?" the Imparato said in surprise the same time as Laila said in shock, "Brinhat! Why are you in this human's house?"

Segrace just raised his eyebrows, "Goodmorning Imparato! Goodmorning Miss Gailard! Is it wrong to be in another allievo's cottage?"

"No mister Brinhat, but I would like to know why you are here at this time of the day?"

"I was helping Miss Potter in her project."

"What project?"

"A personal one…" Segrace started but Laila could not hold her tongue.

"Why are you doing anything with her when you avoid me whenever I come to you for help? Don't tell you've taken a fancy to this..."

"Miss Gailard!" He said in a strong voice, "I can and will associate myself with whoever I wish. I have helped you; I just don't wish to do your work. I do NOT need to explain all my life to anyone." He then turned to the Imparato, "Sir, I am helping her with her personal project, regarding which we have taken permission from headmaster. Please don't retard the image of drackens amongst others with such silly confrontations."

The Imparato nodded, but the Laila was not finished, "A human. I don't understand what you see in an orphan freak of …"

"OUT!" Jocelyn shouted at her while the things in the room started vibrating. "GET OUT! I don't want to hear another word. Get Out!"

Osada reacted to the wishes of her allievo, and suddenly, Imparato Randsey and Laila found themselves outside the cottage. The Imparato, understanding what happened, immediately flew to the headmaster while Laila stomped back to her cottage, fuming.

Inside the cottage, Segrace immediately turned to Jocelyn as the phoenixes appeared beside her.

"Miss Potter! Please, they are gone. Calm yourself."

Jocelyn slumped into the sofa after a while, "Why me? Why always me?"

Not knowing what to answer her, Segrace bid her farewell and went to get ready for the classes. That night, Jocelyn was surprised to find him at her door, but he convinced her that he was there of his free will and had nothing against her. They went to their lake and placed the replacement rune sheets with some decorative fake eggs on them. Segrace was impressed with the funny designs Jocelyn drew on them. After he cast some basic wards around them, they went back. The first task was the next day.

 _At Hogwarts, the next day…_

Fred, George, Neville, Luna and Daphne arrived early and took their seats in the stands, closest to the arena where the task would be. They had helped Fleur as much as they could, but it was up to her how she performed. But what was exciting them was the note from Joy early in the morning, which said them to enjoy the show and that it was dedicated to them.

Soon the event started. Luda Bagman started his commentary.

"Welcome Ladies and gentlemen to the first task of the Triwizard Tournament. The contestants will have to face the unknown challenge to retrieve a golden egg, which would be their clue for the next task. Our first contestant would be Cedric Diggory, followed by Fleur Delacour and Victor Krum at the last. Though Harry Potter's name has appeared out of the goblet, he is absent and we can only pray that he does not suffer in any way. Now, let us view the challenge for Mister Diggory."

A loud roar reverberated throughout the field as the keepers of the dragon rushed into the arena levitating large eggs. The dragon must have fought when they were kidnapping her eggs, for as soon as they placed it in the middle of the arena and opened the heavy gates, a dragon rushed inside immediately to her eggs and crouched threateningly around them, growling.

"Ferocious, isn't she? This is a welsh green dragon, very popular for her deadly claws and sharp senses. Let us see how Mister Diggory would get past her."

The dragon had calmed down by now, but was still very attentive to its surroundings. The smaller gate opened soon and Cedric Diggory stepped out of it.

"Here comes out Hogwarts champion, Cedric Diggory. He looks determined to me. He quickly moves to take cover behind the bushes but, oh no, the dragon has spotted him. She is looking in his direction and then around her. She is now standing up and moving away, maybe towards Diggory… no she stopped… what is she doing? She is adjusting her eggs? NO… wait, she is lifting the golden egg among her eggs! Why? Oh look, Mister Diggory is taking this chance to move closer… No wait, the dragon is doing something! She put the egg out of her nest and... What? Is she sniffing something? No wait... WHAT!? What happened to the eggs?"

As they all watched, the dragon eggs suddenly disappeared, only to be replaced by dummy eggs. But they were colorful. And with weird designs on them. And most of all, they were flashing. Neville was first to snort, followed by Daphne closing her mouth with her palm to prevent laughing.

"Oh, hey flashy eggs… Joy, you missed adding pink color!" Luna said calmly. This broke the dam and the group of friends fell over laughing, soon followed by the whole stadium. Meanwhile, the dragon huffed a ball of fire and kept the golden egg back into the nest. Then she sat smugly and eyed the contestant with a nod.

The rest of the competition went as planned, the only difference being colorful eggs in the nests instead of the original ones. The keepers were confused; where were the eggs? As soon as the first task was over, they tried to bring the surviving eggs back out of the arena. But the dragon, no longer careful about her eggs, growled and swiped at them. And winning against a nesting dragon that did not hold back was unattainable.

To their surprise, the dragon did not stop them from levitating the nest, but calmly followed them back to her cage. But the moment one of them moved ahead to check what happened to the eggs, she let out a big flame blocking their path. It was terror looking into those menacing eyes as she gracefully moved forward and sat on the bright eggs.

To their dismay, the other two dragons were protective of their eggs too, and they could not test what was different. It was at the end that the issue worsened. Victor Krum was a fluid fighter. As dangerous the Hungarian Horntail was with her spiky tail and clawed wings, her strength became her weakness as she fought the contestant. She accidently stomped many of her eggs. This made her very angry, for it could easily have been her own eggs. So when the determined keepers cast spells at her to keep her away from the eggs, the enraged dragon let loose a jet of flame at them, which burned her chains away. As the keepers ran away to save themselves, she withdrew the rune sheet from her nest and burned it. Then, opening her wide wings she took off. Call it her magic or mother instincts, she knew where her eggs were; she was determined to reach them away from these parasites.

 _At Amictos…_

The whole week of meager sleep, combined with a night of Astronomy class had knocked Jocelyn off into a deep sleep the whole morning. It was only when Dobby woke her up to have her lunch that the left over school work caught up to her. She gulped down a hasty lunch and sat down to do her work. But since she had not concentrated at all during classes, she could not make head or tail of the work she was supposed to do. Just as she resigned to read the books to get caught up with the subject, she heard a knock on her door.

It was two of her classmates, Alano Drestoir and Saelig Seamase.

"Hi?"

"Hi Miss Potter!" Saelig greets her, "May we come in?"

"Please." Jocelyn is completely confused why they were here. That is until she looks at them taking out their books.

"You came to study here?"

Alano looks up at her, "Please don't panic. Segrace, our senior and neighbor, told us yesterday that you were immersed in your project this whole week so you had not concentrated on your studies. We thought that we could help you out."

"But why?"

Saelig smiled at her, "Do we need a reason? We had time. We are interested in helping our classmate and neighbor. And we wanted to." He shrugs. "Now, don't waste time when you got such a wonderful chance to catch up with your work. Come on now."

Bewildered, but not wanting to look a gift horse in its mouth, Jocelyn brings out her own books and sits with them. The next two hours they are immersed in their lessons and assignments.

A hard pounding on the door startles them. As soon as Dobby opens it, Segrace bursts into the room.

"Miss Potter, you need to go now. Immediately! I've destroyed two of the sheets, but one sheet is still holding eggs. And the runes on it have erased."

They had charmed the sheet pairs such that destroying one would erase the runes on the other sheet. So this could only mean that one of the dragon's sheet has been destroyed while the other two had returned their eggs. She rushed out of the cottage with an 'excuse me'. Segrace followed her. Alano and Saelig, confused, followed them too.

They soon reached the lake where they had placed the sheets. Just then, there was aloud roar in the air.

"Oh my! What's that?" Alano exclaimed.

Jocelyn paled, "Hungarian Horntail."

"A dragon!?" Saelig turned to her, and paled himself when she nodded.

Soon, they could see the dragon in the sky, flapping around trying to find an opening in the wards of Amictos. All the allievos and Imparatos came out of the cottage to watch as the dragon tried to enter the wards and got repelled every time. After a few trials, the dragon got frustrated and fired a huge blast of flame at Amictos. It was beautiful and deadly, watching the flames form a dome over the land around the wards.

"We need to calm her and let the wards accept her in. She is just agitated."

Alano and Saelig looked at her in confusion, as Segrace nodded. Jocelyn turned to the three of them and spoke in a steady voice.

"Please help me here. I will answer any questions later. Saelig, please run as fast as you can to the headmaster and let him know that the dragon is here for her eggs. Alano, fly fast to the allievos and Imparatos. Tell them to stop casting spells at her. She means no harm yet, but will not hold back if irritated."

Both of them dispersed.

"Segrace, please help me one more time."

"Of course, Miss Potter. Tell me what to do."

"Can you fly while carrying me?"

Segrace nodded.

"Can you take me to the dragon?"

"What?"

"Please. You've seen me with them. I can communicate with them, but only when close."

Segrace, though unwilling, came close to her. He watched as she closed her eyes tightly for a while and then opened them. She looked determined. She held out her hands and Segrace scooped her in bridal style. He noticed the shiver that coursed through her body at his touch. Flexing his wings, he quickly flew up and out of the wards.

The dragon was enraged. She could sense her eggs nearby but could not reach them. Someone was fighting and she did not like it at all. How dare these small beings try to keep her away! The human had promised that the eggs would be safe. How dare she keep her from reaching them!

Segrace flew up behind the dragon to find a safe spot to land Jocelyn. But a Hungarian Horntail had spikes all over its body. The dragon sensed someone behind her and turned around. She found a dracken there and fired flames at him. Segrace barely dodged the flames, but could not escape the tail of the dragon which hit him on his arms, injuring both him and Jocelyn. Ignoring the injuries, Segrace tried to go behind her again, but was flapped away by her wings.

"This is not working! Cast a calming spell at it if you know one" Jocelyn shouted at him. She twisted in his arms so he was holding her by her waist. Both of them concentrated and sent a strong calming spell at the dragon. The dragon paused its attack, trying to shake away the spell.

"Let me go. Now! Go back to Amictos and guard the eggs."

Jocelyn jumped from his arms, falling a few feet in the air, before she caught one of the spikes on the dragon's tail. This broke the dragon out of her stupor and she had to hold tight as the dragon flapped her tail hither-tether trying to shake the burden away. Not minding about the injuries, Jocelyn slowly but steadily climbed on the dragon. She had climbed up to the back when the dragon flipped violently and threw her off; she barely managed to hold on to a sharp spike.

"Let go, I will catch you."

She turned her head sideways to recognize her help. It was Alano. The headmaster was there too, looking straight into the dragon's eyes as his magic spread around, inducing calm all around. Jocelyn let go of the spike, letting herself fall free. She shuddered as she fell into a warm hold. But there was no time to lose. She gathered all her might and sent a powerful vision of the dragon's eggs to her.

The dragon paused abruptly and swiped its head towards them, finally recognizing the human who came to them. She finally calmed down when the headmaster managed to contact her.

He turned to them, "Lead us to her nest."

Alano flew down fast. Jocelyn was now shuddering hard in his arms, and this was confusing him. Finally they reached down to the nest, where Segrace and Saelig were guarding the nest from the curious allievos. When they saw the dragon approaching, Segrace removed the charms he placed and both moved aside. It was a spectacular scene for everyone in Amictos, to see a mother dragon sniff through her eggs and then turn around them once before settling over her nest and going to sleep.

The moment Alano set her down, Dobby appeared beside her and silently popped her away to her cottage. Saelig noticed this and the three boys silently slipped away to meet her. Nefira, their elf classmate, noticed this and followed them.

When they got into the cottage, the first thing they heard was the two phoenixes singing. Jocelyn was huddled on the floor in a corner, shivering, and Dobby was covering her with blankets. The three did not understand what to do, what was happening. Nefira soon came in beside them and gasped. She immediately rushed to Jocelyn's side and started giving orders.

"House-Elf, bring some chocolate immediately. Mister Seamase, please rush to the infirmary and get some calming draught. Mister Drestoir, please see if you can find the headmaster. Tell him her magic has reached its brim. Hurry!"

Segrace watched as Nefira mixed the calming draught into the chocolate. Before she could feed it, Hedwig hopped on her shoulder and cried tears into it. Nefira coaxed Jocelyn's mouth open and put the chocolate in. Jocelyn was barely holding herself together, unaware of her surroundings. The headmaster arrived soon, telling all to move back and then engulfing Jocelyn with his with his wings. A few minutes later there was a surge of magic within his wings; though it did not escape its confines, they could still feel it.

When it was over and headmaster released her, Jocelyn was on the floor unconscious. Dobby thanked everybody and popped her away inside, followed by the phoenixes. Headmaster too left soon afterwards. Nefira then turned to the three boys still standing in the hall with a raised eyebrow, "Care to explain?"

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **How do you feel after reading this chapter?**

 **Coming up: Jocelyn making friends.**

 **pss... Rawrking, I am not opposed to negative reviews, nor to criticism. But I am still 'trying' to understand your review; whether it was a positive or a negative one. Please clarify. Did you not like my summary or is it about my chapter? Where do you feel needs improvement? And thank you for reviewing me, it feels good to know someone feels my story is worthy of a comment.**

 **{**

Rawrking chapter 3 . May 26

Wow. Feels like a badly written summary by an ESL student who is trying. Keyword is "trying".

 **}**


	16. Friends

When Jocelyn opened her eyes the next morning, she was surprised to see Nefira, her elfin classmate, sleeping beside her bed in a cushioned chair. She tried to get up silently, but winced as her body experienced a spasm of pain. This woke up Nefira.

"Hey, lay down. You are exhausted, both physically and magically. It would do you no good moving around."

Jocelyn slumped back into her bed. Hedwig flashed beside her and fondled her head with her wing. A sense of calm engulfed Jocelyn and she lovingly petted her phoenix friend.

"Are you alright?"

 _Yes, I am. I did practically nothing. Never leave me behind on your nasty adventures. I am not the weakling anymore, you are._ Hedwig crooned and the girl smiled at her. Then she turned to the elf sitting in the room.

"I'm sorry, but why are you here?"

"I was looking after you." Nefira replied casually.

"Why?"

"You were hurt Potter. That does warrant someone looking after you." Nefira huffed. Jocelyn felt ashamed and turned her head away. Nefira noticed this and immediately softened.

"Hey look here. I am sorry that I gave a wrong impression of myself till now. I don't have anything against you. But the tales we had grown up with were against humans and I wanted to judge you for yourself before behaving anyway with you. I told Catherin and Selina to not judge you based on stories, but they do not listen. I am sorry if I gave you the impression that I support their behavior towards you."

Jocelyn struggled but finally succeeded in sitting upright, leaning on the headboard, "What changed?"

"Your fight yesterday of course. Having two phoenixes by your side helped too."

"Don't judge me based on others, please!"

Hedwig pecked on Jocelyn's ear as Nefira laughed, "If they were not there, then it would just taken me a bit longer. What I meant is that phoenixes don't associate with those with evil intentions. They are patient, yes, but not idiots."

Both of them laughed as Hedwig mockingly lifted her nose into the air. Then Nefira's tone became serious, "I saw you yesterday Potter. I saw your bravery in dealing with the dragon, your quickness in dealing with the situation, your caring nature when you sent Brinhat back because he was hurt, and I heard the whole story from your three friends yesterday."

"Friends?"

"I meant Brinhat, Seamase and Drestoir. They care for you, and so do I. So, what do you say, would you like to be my friend Potter?"

She extended her hand. Jocelyn smiled at her and shook her hand.

"Good, I get the bragging rights to be your first friend at Amictos. Now I promise to keep your secrets, i.e. the fact that you have Dobby, Hedwig and Fawkes with you. There are a lot more things I have to talk to you, but that can be done later. I will take my leave now and return after freshening up. Okay? Good. Take care and let Dobby take care of you. He was pacing like a grandfather the whole day yesterday. Bye."

Jocelyn smiled as she watched Nefira leave gracefully. She cuddled Hedwig in her arms, "You are my best friend, you know?" She said to the bird who rolled her eyes.

 _Stop buttering me up with things I already know. Find something new._

Dobby immediately popped beside her and crossed his arms, "Miss Joy!" He said seriously and Jocelyn sighed and nodded. She had no other choice but submit to his pampering today.

She had freshened up, eaten, and was comfortable on the sofa with her class work when her Amictos 'friends' showed up.

"So how are you feeling today, Miss Potter?" Alano asked after they had all settled down. Jocelyn was covered by blankets and there was a constant supply of tea and snacks on the table, courtesy of Dobby.

"Good enough. All this is just Dobby's pampering. And please, call me Jocelyn or Joy. After how I endangered you all yesterday, it feels odd to talk so formally."

Saelig leaned forward, "Do you feel comfortable enough with us to treat us as friends?" he asked seriously.

"Umm… If you want me to be yours? I usually get everyone into trouble."

"No… we know what we want. The question is if you want to be our friend."

"I would… like that. Very much. But I don't think I deserve…"

"That is for us to judge, isn't it? I want to be your friend. Do you want to be mine?"

Jocelyn nodded, controlling her tears of happiness.

"So friends, Joy?"

"Friends Saelig."

"So would you like to be my friend? It would feel good to have a sane female around me."

Now Jocelyn's face broke into a big smile at Alano's words and she nodded happily. Nefira exclaimed in protest which made them all laugh.

"So may I include into our group of mismatched friends?" Segrace asked her, "We did tamed three dragons together!"

Jocelyn laughed at his reminder, "Of course, Segrace."

"Thank you all of you. I had almost given up hopes of making friends here."

"Oi no mushy stuff, please." Nefira held up her hands, "Now that we are all friends, stop being so formal with each other. Okay? Good. Now what are you doing Joy?"

"Oh, this is runes work."

"Runes?" Alano asked, "But we had already completed the class work for that yesterday, didn't we? What are you doing now?"

Before Jocelyn could shush him, Dobby popped beside her and vanished her books, "You promised not to do anything other than necessary, Miss Joy. That means no studying other than urgent class work." He pointed a finger at her. Everybody laughed as Jocelyn groaned and slipped deeper into her covers. The rest of the day she spent it with her friends in her cottage.

The next few days were a bit tense, for the allievos were looking at her in a new light; and not necessarily favorable. But her life was easier there with her new friends, who only increased in numbers. The first of them were two female centaurs, Serine and Folana.

After she was declared healed by Dobby and let free, the first thing that Jocelyn did was to go to the mother dragon along with her friends to the lake. The dragon's nest was there, the eggs all covered up in hay while the dragon was taking a drink from the lake. The moment the Hungarian horntail sensed someone nearby, she immediately started growling. An image flashed into her mind, that of the human and the dracken, and a few other standing in the border along with a sense of calmness and friendship. She did quite like the human child, so the growling stopped. Only then the friends stepped near her.

The dragon stalked near them as they all stood still. She prowled around them and sniffed them. Only when she was satisfied did she huff at them and went back to the lake.

"That was terrifying!" Alano said with a shiver as the elves nodded. Segrace just laughed at them, "You are talking about one. I faced three."

"Yeah yeah, but they were caged and there were Hedwig, Fawkes and Joy with you. You don't get to boast." Saelig looked around and gasped lightly, "If you consider yourself so brave, I dare you to go and copy Joy right now."

The four of them turned to see Jocelyn standing beside the dragon and stroking the dragons jaw. The said dragon was… purring? Segrace shook his head and held his hands high, "All hail the dragon mistress Jocelyn." Everyone just laughed. Soon they became comfortable around the dragon and just played around.

The dragon was contentedly sitting on her eggs watching the children play around when it sensed someone else nearby and growled. Segrace was the one to take charge, "Who's there?"

Serine and Folana, two centaurs, stepped out of the trees.

"Greetings Mister Brinhat!" Serine said.

"Greetings Serine! Greetings Folana! Were you just roaming about? Because you sure did alert the dragon."

"Oh, we are sorry. We wanted to meet you."

"Oh just a minute." He turned to Jocelyn, who consulted the dragon and turned to her friends at dragon's nod, "The dragon agreed them to come near if you protect her eggs if necessary. Deal?"

The others nodded and sat down around the dragon, chatting. The centaurs came to Jocelyn.

"We are here on behalf of Amictos' centaurs to tell you that we want to be at peace with you. The talks of various allievos had irritated many of us, and we wanted to make sure you know that we would have no part in it. This we speak after consulting every centaur and taking their honest opinion. If at all any of us are found needlessly speaking against you, they will be boycott amongst us."

"Oh… um… thanks. Do I need to give any reply?"

The two centaurs laughed at her perplexed expression, "No Miss Potter, we were just conveying the message of the whole group present here." Folana replied, "Personally, I would like to be friends with all of you."

"Yeah me too." Serine agreed, "Remaining amongst our small group is good, but why hold back when I can make so many more friends. I have observed all of you, and I would like to be a part of your group."

Jocelyn finally exhaled and laughed. Unsure of what to reply, she turned to Saelig. He smiled at her and turned to the centaurs, "Sure. We would love to be friends with you. Would you like to join us?" And thus they became part of the group.

A goblin joined them next. He actually went against his group of residents in Amictos and came forward to became friends with them. The whole group was actually lounging at their banyan tree when he approached Saelig.

"Greetings Seamase of the elf-folk. I have come forward despite all warnings from my alikes to join hands with you. May I be considered your amongst your friends?"

Saelig was in a fix. This was direct and completely sudden. What was he supposed to do? Jocelyn noticed this and decided to come forward, greeting him in his tongue.

"Selahoit sein daimar!" She half bowed with her fist clenched, tapping it first on her head and then her heart. This surprised the goblin. He greeted her back the similar way.

"Excuse me for my ignorance, but this is one of the very few things that I know in your toungue. You have come with a hand of friendship, may I presume?"

"Yes lady! Your knowledge if appreciated; very few get the privilege to even hear the tongue, lest speak it."

"I had great tutors." Then she turned to Saelig, "So what do you want to reply to his request?"

"Why do I have to say anything?" Perplexed, he turned to the goblin, "Sharpclaws, isn't it? Why did you come to me specifically?"

"You usually lead the group, and you are the one most interacting with all allievos of all kind. Personally, what I liked about you is that you never neglect anyone around you, that you try to include them in activities or chats."

"You are putting me on too big a pedestal!" He turned to others, "Guys, I am okay. I know his from the politics class, we have been partners many times. What do you all say?"

Segrace noticed everyone's acceptance and welcomed the goblin, "Welcome to the group Sharpclaws."

The goblin smiled his feral grin (which actually is a pleasant smile amongst them), "Thank you. My name is Hothor Sharpclaws. Please, you all may call me Hothor."

"Welcome Hothor!" "Welcome!" "Hi Hothor!" "Nice to meet you!"

Everyone greeted him and he joined them with his introductions about his life. After a while, Nefira brought up the question on everyone's mind.

"Say Hothor, why did you say that your kind were against being friends with us?"

"Oh, goblins usually keep to themselves. Very rarely it happens that we open ourselves to other kinds. You do seem to be one of the exceptions, Miss Potter! Anyway, my people were against me befriending with a group which had varied kinds among them."

"And why did you join us then?"

"Simple, because I like all of you. I like the way you look out for each other and I like the way you just follow Saelig when he makes a decision. Now that requires complete trust. Something that I have not enjoyed till now. Know that you will have my confidance and faith till you betray me."

"Thank you Hothor" Saelig replied, "And fear not. As you said, we look out for each other."

Alano interrupted in a teasing tone, "Speaking of which. Joy, would you accompany me in doing the favors?"

"Oh sure!" She leapt up from her seat and joined Alano in front of Saelig. Together the bowed to him, "All hail the leader of mismatched! The king of all races!"

"GUYS! That's… That's… STOP IT!" Saeling crawled back hastily as everyone laughed.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **Not much in this chapter, I know, but I am working on how to present the next part, so wrote this in the meanwhile as another introduction to characters.**

 **Coming up: Feelings of attraction... the actual romance is farther away, but the next chapter will move the story in that direction.**


	17. Plans for Noel break

**This chapter will be in Alano's perspective.**

Alano Hasan Drestoir was happy and sad at the same time when he got the invitation to join Amictos. Happy because he got a chance to study in that prestigious school and that he would get to meet people of all kinds there; sad because he knew that once the news of his admittance got around, no other fairy would treat him as a being with feelings, but just a means to their own needs; be it as a potential ally or a favored mate. Being a male fairy was tiring enough, the only positive he could see was that he would have at least some years to be himself at the school.

So his happiness knew no bounds when he made friends with an elf, then a dracken, then a human, followed soon by another elf, two centaurs and a goblin. Friends, he had never thought he would have. Each of his friends had a completely different character, but together they were a beautiful mesh. The last few months passed quickly and pleasantly with them, with a few adventures added here and there. They ranged as dangerous as confronting an angry mother dragon to as silly as skipping classes to roam around in the woods with Folana and Serine, just to escape from their fairy classmates. He had never expected to befriend a human, and be pleased.

Jocelyn was her name, and someone had aptly nicknamed her as 'Joy'. She was the heart of the group though she never stood out. She was a completely different person as a friend to as a stranger. Since he has been friends with her, her character and attitude earned a special place in his heart. He was sure that this was the same in every friend's case. She was a fun person to spend time with, a brave person to stand with, a caring person to confide in and an intelligent person to learn with. And the most frustrating yet exciting part of all? You will be part of unprecedented and unexpected events just by associating with her. The dragon being one example, the other were the merpeople.

It was on a weekend when they went exploring the sky.

 _FLASHBACK_

"Hasan! Hasan! Open the door. I've finally got it!"

Alano was pulled out of his book by an incessant tapping on the door by a very excited Jocelyn. He smiled to himself as he walked to the door; Jocelyn ranked top in the females he could bear to be with. She was the one who started calling him by his middle name. Her one statement, "I like that name better" was all it needed for him to allow her to call him so. But only her, no one else.

"Finally! How long does it take to open the door?" She skipped into his cottage, holding…

"What are you planning to do Joy? I keep my cottage very clean, thank you."

"Oh stop it. Here! I got the two Nimbus 2001's today. Can we go flying now?"

"Now? As in right now?"

"It is a Saturday, you don't have company and I am assuming you don't have any urgent works to do. Please!"

"Are you sure you can fly on that thing?"

"This is a world class broomstick. It'll knock you off your wings." She held the broom in pride.

"That's what I am afraid of." At her glare he gave in. "Fine, go call others. I'll join you in a moment."

"Thank you!" She jumped on her feet in excitement, kissed his cheek and stormed out of the house; leaving a shocked fairy with his hand on the same cheek.

Once he had composed himself and got his things in place, he walked to their standard meeting place, the big banyan tree.

"… whatever, I'll show you. You cannot outmaneuver me in the sky. I am the queen there."

"Of course, till the broom snaps under your weight and you fall down?" Saelig said nervously.

"Oh come on Sael! Grace, tell him how good it feels in the sky."

Segrace hesitated, and that was enough to make the elf more nervous, "Well, I trust my wings, I enjoy flying. If you trust your broom, then maybe so. I don't know, I never need any assistance in flying."

Jocelyn then noticed Alano coming, "Hasan! Tell these cowards that flying is fun." She insisted.

Alano stopped in his tracks, looking at them like a deer caught in headlights, "Ummm… flying is fun."

His expression and tone made the whole group laugh. Jocelyn then turned to the Saelig, "Sael, I won't force you, but I bought one for you too, just in case. But Grace is right, you need to trust your ride before you ride it."

Saelig looked into her eyes for one moment before taking a deep breath and nodding. Hothar, Folana, Serine and Nefira were the next ones addressed, "Are you sure you don't want to try?"

Folana smiled, "Joy, enjoy yourself and don't feel like you are leaving us out of anything. Centaurs are made for land and we are happy here."

"As are goblins. In fact, we are even better under it." Hothar added.

Nefira held up her hands, "Don't look at me. I fell off the family's flying carpet in childhood; being in air scares me."

Jocelyn nodded to them and then started tutoring Saelig. Soon, Saelig was finally in the sky with them and whooping in Joy. Alano noticed Jocelyn still on the ground smiling at them, so he flew to her, "So, scared of taking off Joy?"

In answer, she immediately climbed on her broom and whooshed past him like an arrow. She flew like she was made for the sky, diving, rolling, turning and doing all kinds of aerobics. It was captivating to watch her.

"She is a natural in sky, isn't she?" Segrace flapped his wings beside Alano, watching Jocelyn showing off her moves to a wide-eyed Saelig.

"Mmm-Hmm" Alano nodded and soon, the four of them were flying over the ground. It must have been half an hour when they spotted water far away. Looking at each other in excitement, the four flew in that direction and came to the end of their land and start of ocean.

"Wow!" Jocelyn exclaimed. Knowing her history this was the first time for her, watching the beach.

Jocelyn took off, flying close to the water, her feet barely skimming the surface. Suddenly she was pulled inside the water by force. When she did not come up immediately, the three boys panicked. They immediately flew to the spot, only to find a fainted Jocelyn well below the surface. There were mermaids swimming around her. Alano immediately conjured a rope and gave one end to the other boys, "Pull me up when I have her."

He immediately folded his wings and dived into the water. Jocelyn was floating mid-water like being held up by some force. She had a bubble around her nose and the mermaids were lazily swimming around her. He reached out for her, and was surprised when one of the mermaids swam to her and helped her up to him. They were immediately tugged out of water and he took her to the shore. She was unharmed, just unconscious. Alano, Saelig and Segrace were surprised to see a few merpeople raise out of the water near the shore, their leader being an old one. They looked worried too. The three boys were startled when a voice, an old voice, spoke in their minds.

 _Will she be alright?_

They looked at each other and then towards the merpeople. The old one nodded at them.

 _Fear not, it is I who speak. She saved our younglings. We wish to know if she is alright._

Segrace was the first to recover, "Guys, I think that merpeople talk the same way Joy contacted the dragons. She told me of it. We have to focus our mind, energy and magic to create a link with their mind. Once the link is made, she told me to stay on the surface and not dwell into their minds, at least the dragons, for they are supposedly more powerful than we can even presume. I think we need to do the same with this old one too. Be careful though, the language does not remain a barrier this way. Whatever you want feel or think will be reflected through the link to them truthfully. Let us try."

Of the three, Alano was the one who succeeded.

 _Can you hear me?_

 _I can hear you child. It is good to see the land-ones have not forgotten the old ways of communication._

 _Umm… thank you. What happened?_

 _A shark was attacking our young ones. One of them pulled her into water accidently when trying to escape it. The kids say that a powerful blast of power was sent to the shark from the girl, before she fainted. They immediately created a bubble for her breath and contacted us. They were waiting for our instructions. We would have brought her to shore soon, but seeing you arrive, they thought she was safer with you._

 _Thank you. We were worried. She is all right. Please thank your young ones for that air bubble, she would have drowned otherwise._

After telling the others what the situation was, the merpeople promised good faith and left. That was after confirming with Alano that he would be the ambassador if and when the need would arise either side.

 _END FLASHBACK_

Well anyway, the reason Alano was reflecting all that right now (during the lunch break under their tree) was because soon the break for The Noel (Christmas break for humans) would start and he did not want to leave school to attend the celebrations at home. Well, that was a valid choice, but he also did not want to be alone for the break. All his friends were leaving.

"Hey Alano! What has you thinking?" Segrace patted him on his shoulder.

"The Noel break." He sighed.

"That should be a happy time, you know."

"If spent with people you like being with. I will cross the Chancel this break. I will not be left alone in peace."

"And what does that mean?"

"Oh sorry… A Chancel is considered holy, for it is the stage of our life when we enter into adulthood…"

"And are open for mating. I understand. So isn't there anyway you can stay here? Wait, does that mean your birthday is in this break?"

Alano nodded, "Yes. I can opt to stay here, but all of you are leaving. I like to be away from fans and manipulators, but that does not mean I like being alone. I have been amongst people and yet felt lonely till now. For the first time someone befriended me for me, and this is an important milestone and… sorry I am rambling."

"It's okay. I wish I could invite you with me, but I myself will be under scrutiny and training this break. I don't think I would be a very good company. Saelig… I don't know. Elves were never the friendly ones now, were they?"

"I am the friendliest person in the whole wide world, you know." Saelig plopped beside them with his books, a meal and a smile, "Why the morose faces?"

"Will the elves welcome me with you for the break?"

Saelig opened his mouth and then closed it; he had nothing to say.

"Thought so! I don't want to be alone this break, and I don't want to go back with other fairies for my Chancel. They will devour me."

"When is your birthday?"

"Two days after the Noel."

"Oh! I can make it to wherever you are then. Only till Noel will we be busy. And we have to return to school three days after Noel anyway."

"Yeah! I will try myself too. I cannot be sure but…" Segrace added.

Alano smiled at them, "Thank you."

A discussion signaled the arrival of the remaining friends.

"… and I am telling you, goblins are the best warders." Hothar said proudly.

"That may be underground and in stones, but none can cast guards among trees like centaurs." This was a passionate Folana.

"Why do trees matter?"

"Because they are our source to the vast source of energy, the land. You know how powerful that is."

"Hmmm… I do. But the goblins derive energy form their too. So ..."

"You know, I think elves do it the best!" Nefira put in her input, "We ward against intentions, so there is no way against them."

By now, everyone had settled around in a rough circle.

"Maybe so, but I cannot ask them that now, can I?" Jocelyn said, "Maybe I will do all I can access, then it would be the safest place to be. But let me start with goblins. They have already been paid to ward and build."

"What are you talking about?" Saelig could not hold his curiosity.

"The goblins have promised to start constructing my house this Christmas… sorry, I mean Noel break. We were talking about warding."

"Does that mean you will stay here this break too?" Alano asked hopefully.

"No?" Jocelyn was confused at his disappointment, "I have to talk about the construction, wards and what not. I have to go shopping. Oh, and I also plan to do some plantations in my place. Why? Aren't you going home?"

"I don't want to."

Jocelyn did not pry, "But you will be alone here then. That's no way to celebrate! And your birthday is coming soon too."

"Don't worry Joy. We were discussing that just now."

"Oh! So where will you go?"

"Nowhere! Saelig says he will try to come to me on my Chan… birthday." For some reason, Alano was hesitant to bring up Chancel in front of Jocelyn.

"So will you stay with the goblins then? I cannot believe you are close to King Ragnok of Britain. I cannot believe you never told me." Hothar grumbled to Jocelyn.

"I told you, that is no secret. And it never came up either."

"Okay, then promise me you will invite me if and when you get to meet him."

"Okay, okay!" She held up her hands, "I will ask his permission to introduce you. Happy?" Hothar nodded.

"So where will you stay?" Nefira asked her.

"Where I am building my house, of course. I have my portable residence." Jocelyn said smugly.

"Which is?" queried Serine.

In response, Jocelyn called Dobby to bring her trunk. "This!" Jocelyn said happily. The whole group burst out laughing.

"haha.. you will live in a trunk?"

"Hey!" Jocelyn said indignantly, "This is a masterpiece. Come look for yourself."

And they all did just that. They took a tour inside the trunk, at awe with the master work done inside.

"Well, I must say, it is well made." Segrace said finally, once they were out of the trunk and it had been sent back.

"Come to think of it" Saelig started, "Alano, you can go and live with Joy during the break. That way we could all visit together after the Noel. You can make it, can't you Folana and Serine?"

Serine thought about it, "Not usually, but since we have phoenixes and a house-elf for transportation, I guess we can convince our elders. What do you say, Folana."

Folana agreed, "Yes, it would be good to visit some new place for a change."

Nefira was already making her escape plans, "Well, Saelig, if you will come to my parents with a request to spend the last of holidays together visiting someplace, then they will agree. No questions. So it will depend on you, of course."

Segrace also added his part, "Lets plan for the three days after Noel. This way we can come back to Amictos together."

Alano was watching Jocelyn. As much as he would like to spend the break as they were planning, he could see hesitation clearly on Jocelyn's face. He leaned forward, "Joy! Before we finalize anything, tell me you are okay with all of us coming to your place. Is the place supposed to be kept a secret?"

"Ummm… Nothing like that. It is a secret I will share with you happily." she fumbled her fingers, "But why are you all so excited all of a sudden? Where I stay is complete wildness and no comforts. Why do you want to come leaving your families and friends behind? I don't understand."

Nefira, who was sitting by her side, looked straight in her face, "Joy, you are our friend. You are a part of this mismatched best friends group. They same way we don't want to leave Alano alone, we care enough to not leave you behind in anything. We want to spend time with you. You tell us, do you want us or not?"

Jocelyn had tears in her eyes as she nodded, "Yes, thank you. You are all welcome to stay with me. Hasan, will you be comfortable? Should I arrange for anything specific?"

Alano just rolled his eyes, "Oh come on, you talk as if I am a pampered prince. If you don't know yet, I am wild myself."

"Yeah yeah" Hothar remarked, "As wild as a peacock. You know, with your long hair and fancy strut all around."

"Hey! I do not strut."

"You actually do honey." Nefira batted her eyelashes.

And so they went back to their usual banters. Jocelyn's face was bright with happiness, and that made everyone feel good about the plan.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **Just some minor edits. Please do tell me how you felt about this chapter.**

 **Coming up: The Noel break with friends.**


	18. Noel break - I

"Welcome to my sanctuary, Hasan" Jocelyn said to Alano as soon as they both appeared through two burst of flames, courtesy of Fawkes and Hedwig.

Alano was impressed, "Wow! This place is so beautiful". A meadow on a mountain top overlooking a vast green landscape and with a river flowing beside which built into a waterfall below. It was breath-taking.

"Well, would you be okay staying here for the break? I mean, we don't have many facilities…"

"Shut up Joy."

"But…"

"I could settle down here peacefully and never complain. How did you find this place?"

"I don't know. Magic, I suppose." Jocelyn said off handedly as she was opening her trunk.

Alano tried to stifle his laugh, but a snicker from Dobby, standing dutifully beside Jocelyn, broke his constraint. Both he and Dobby ended up laughing with each other.

"What did I say?"

"Nothing nothing" Alano said wiping his tears, "Just, never change Joy. Never ever."

Not understanding the joke and also feeling shy at his endearment, Jocelyn turned back to the task at hand.

"Okay Dobby, will you be able to set up as necessary. All the compartments of the trunk are open and…"

"I know Miss Joy. Now shoo. Go away."

Alano was confused, "Go where?"

Jocelyn stood up with Nimbus in her hand, "To fly of course. Ready Fawkes? Hedwig?" The birds nodded. "Do you want to come too?"

"Lead the way."

After two hours of playful flying and games in the air, the residents finally settled down for lunch. Alano asked Jocelyn about the plans for the next two weeks. He reminded her that he would like to accompany her where possible, so not to leave him out of anything for sake of unnecessary comfort or courtesy.

"Well, today I would tend to my plantations. We have five days before Christmas from tomorrow. Tomorrow, we will go shopping, for food and needs for our stay here, in the muggle world. Day 2 will be with goblins. Day 3, its Christmas shopping. Day 4 I am meeting my friends. I did not plan anything for the day before Noel, but we can just relax if we want to. Then its Noel, or Christmas. I won't tell you what I have planned for that day, but it included both your customs and ours. After that, our friends will arrive, so I'll leave the planning to you for the next three days. The last tow, we'll see. Maybe just relax and study." Then she looked at him, suddenly doubting her planning, "Umm… if only all this is okay with you. We can change if you want."

Alano just shook his head and raised his palm to hit Jocelyn playfully, but abruptly stopped when she flinched and curled into herself, "Oh sorry, I was not hitting you. Promise."

Jocelyn sat up straight again, looking down, "I know, sorry. It's involuntary, I promise."

"That's okay. And I was about to say that you should stop doubting yourself. I am not a pushover. I will object if I need to. Stop spoiling my vacation."

"Vacation huh? What are we, your maids?" Jocelyn bounced back into her playful mode, though Alano could tell that it was a bit strained, "If you so insist, let me warn you that I am a slave driver. I will make you sweat hard working."

Saying that she sent a mild stinging spell at the fairy, who jumped out of his seat and retaliated. The phoenixes and the house elf joined in the fun too. Later, they all inspected the plantations that Dobby had planted and praised him for it. The rest of the day was spent dirtying themselves in the soil and with playful banters all around.

The next day, when Jocelyn came out for her morning exercise, she was surprised to see Alano there.

"What are you doing here?"

"What? You are not the only one who works out in the morning."

Working along with Alano was distracting. For one, he flared out his wings while exercising and two, his techniques were fascinating. For example, Jocelyn suddenly stopped skipping rope to watch Alano as he stood up and then bent backwards with his hands supporting his body in an arc, and then lifted one leg straight into the air. After a while, he repeated it with his other leg while teasing Jocelyn, "I know I am fascinating. You need to continue if you want to catch up with me." Another example was when he flew into the sky, made a steep dive spinning in the air and flew up again like a dive. Jocelyn was left with her mouth open.

After breakfast, Jocelyn and Alano (with his wings now hidden) took one hand each of Dobby and ported to an empty alley in the muggle world. Alano looked around in daze at the completely different environment and how the muggles have compensated for magic. Electricity itself, and the various devices they built, astounded him. A lot of questions he asked, and Jocelyn patiently replied to his every query. It was evening by the time they came back, and Alano was exhausted enough to fall asleep on the couch immediately after dinner.

The third day, they went to meet the goblins.

Jocelyn and Alano had disguised themselves in muggle attire, much to the delight of the fairy. With wings hidden once again, they both had the phoenixes flash them to another empty alley outside Leaky Cauldron. From there, Jocelyn led a fascinated fairy to the steps of the Gringotts bank. As soon as she greeted the guards in gobledook, they expressed their surprise and hurried them inside while sending a note to Griphook, who met them immediately and led them inside to King Ragnok.

Albus Dumbledore was in a teachers meeting when one of his monitoring alarm went off, signaling that Jocelyn Potter had entered Gringotts.

"Ah, please excuse me. It seems that our Jocelyn Potter has finally decided to show herself. Shall we meet again professors? I wish to speak to her."

"Is she here?" asked Minerva.

"No, but somewhere I was expecting her to come sooner or later."

Flitwick started doubting the headmaster, "What do you wish to speak to her, headmaster?"

"Just asking for her well being; and to convince her to come back to school. I am worried for some wrong influence on her."

Professor Sprout rolled her eyes as she started packing up, "I do not understand why you are so interested in her. You never showed this concern when one of my students stopped schooling."

"Ah, but I did dear. Mr. Thomas had left to learn his trade from his parents. I always look out for my students."

This statement earned him her fierce glare, "I was talking about Jessica Newel, headmaster. She was pulled out to be forced as a death eater. Mr. Thomas had taken my permission to leave, unlike Jessica. I even brought her absence to your notice, but you brushed it off saying that she must be fine. Perhaps you don't look back, but you were the one who killed her during a raid. So stop spouting nonsense and leave Miss Potter in peace. After what she had gone through for three years, I doubt she needs any influence to leave. " She angrily marched out of the room.

Her words had snatched the attention of everyone in room. Septima Vector, the professor of arithmancy was the next to confront him, "How do you know of her arrival anyway, headmaster? Don't tell me you cast the illegal ward…." At his blank face, she gasped, "Oh my, you did! That is cruel."

Minerva turned to her, "What do you mean Septima."

"A blood identity ward, which causes little but a constant drain of magic in the target. This was made illegal for its negative effects and after the invention of identity charm." Minerva was shocked and turned to the headmaster, "how could you?"

"Dears, please. I know what I did, but I had to do it. Voldemort would love any chance to have her in his grasp. He had tried for three years, he would try for more. Identity charm requires her magical signature, which seemed to have changed for some reason. So I had to use her blood to track her appearance. I found some during her fight in Diagon Alley. Now would any of you like to come with me to meet her; to assure yourself that I did right and that she is okay? What I do is always for the greater good."

Minerva just shook his head, "Play your games yourself headmaster. I am not taking part in it."

Everyone started leaving; Flitwick nodded to the other teachers as they started dispersing and immediately went back to his office. He had things to do.

Meanwhile, Alano and Jocelyn were seated across King Ragnok, having done with the customary pleasantries.

"King Ragnok, allow me to introduce Alano Hasan Drestoir, a fairy classmate of mine at Amictos."

"Greetings King Ragnok."

"Greetings Alano of the Drestoirs. It has been long since we last saw a fairy amongst us. Well met indeed."

"Before we start, will you please consider one request?" At the King's nod, Jocelyn continued, "Another friend of mine, Hothar Sharpclaws has requested to be presented before you. He values you in high regard and would like to meet you if you grant permission."

King Ragnok smiled, "Amictos did you well if you are making friends, be it of any race. You may call him here. If I am correct, you would enlist your house-elf and phoenix."

"Of course sir." Handing a letter to Dobby with a nod, she turned back to the king, "King Ragnok, I am here to officially request the goblin services to construct me a home, with highest protection and defense."

"As we have discussed earlier, our builder and warder will need to be allowed to your location today evening. They have already been placed under oaths, same will be done with whoever joins them in their tasks. But you look like you have come to ask something else?"

"I want your searchers to find me a big training area and buy it under my name. This will be for training people, of all races, in defense; and also as a refuge when attacked."

Alano looked at her in surprise. This was new. Ragnok too sat up straight in his chair, "This is a peculiar request. The reasons?"

Jocelyn shrugged, "Call it intuition, sixth sense, a bad feeling, a lucky guess, whatever. I feel like there will be a war soon, and I want me and my friends to be ready."

"What prompted this?"

"Every year, Voldemort has been trying to get back. He won't stop this year. My name came out of Goblet of Fire, despite my absence. And a human has been admitted to Amictos after a very long time. I sense danger coming ahead, just don't know from which direction."

King Ragnok thought for a while before nodding his head. Right then, Hothor arrived. He was awed at the presence of the King. After his formal geerting, the King asked him, "So what prompted you to join them in friendship?"

Hothor answered confidantly, "My king, we are a tight knit group, despite all our differences. Confidence, Encouragement and trust were obvious in their group, and I wanted to be a part of it."

"Well said, Hothor."

"If I may be so bold, may I know what prompted such closeness between you and Jocelyn? I have never heard of you giving humans personal attention."

King Ragnok smiled and joked, "Hmm… there were many at the same time, but the sweetest deal was the delicious 50 feet basilisk flesh. That was delicious." He said it as a matter of fact, so it took a while for Ragnok to grasp the content of his statement.

"50 FEET!"

They all laughed when he jumped from his chair, but the discussion was interrupted by arrival of a paper bird, which unfolded itself into a speaking letter.

 _"Greetings King Ragnok. Albus Dumbledore seems to have placed a blood detection spell on Jocelyn Potter. If she is with you, please warn her that people are already in motion. Do as you see fit regarding his crime if you find that the ward is in Gringotts premises. Please note that he has now lost my allegiance for turning against someone he should protect. I pray you let me stay here, for the sake of teaching and protecting students. May your honor be always upheld."_

It was the voice of professor Flitwick, Jocelyn recognized. She immediately bid farewell to the King and Hothor, and left with Alano. Both of them quickly walked into the main hall of the bank. There were wizards and witches all around. A greeting alarmed them of the person they wanted to avoid. Immediately Jocelyn pulled Alano by hand to one of the last lines for the tellers.

"Ah! Headmaster Dumbledore! So good to see you."

"Good day Mister Diggory."

"Headmaster, I am so happy that my son is the Hogwarts Champion. He will make the school proud, you'll see…"

Jocelyn thanked the pompous nature of Amos Diggory, for he held Dumbledore in place. The two allievos crawled from one line to the next, staying hidden behind people. They were almost at the last when Dumbledore spotted them. Jocelyn's disguise was good, but his experience was better. He recognized her slowly, but when he did, he immediately walked towards them with an _'excuse me'_ to Diggory.

Alano noticed him first.

"Umm Joy, if you want to know, he has spotted you."

One look behind and she knew. Dropping all pretences she ran towards the exit. Just as she entered the road, a stunning spell flew towards her. Dodging it, she ran down the busy streets. Dumbledore immediately apparated in front of her and fired another spell. Jocelyn dodged it again and ran from under his arm.

"Wait Miss Potter. Wait!"

"Hell no! Leave me alone."

Dumbledore apparated next to her and immediately held her hand. "Stop this foolishness and listen to me." She bent down and turned, twisting his hand in the process. Before he could fire a spell, she kicked his wand out with her leg taking his hold as support. As a result he was forced to bend and release her. She fled away once more, dodging and ducking among people.

Dumbledore decided to take chances and pointed his wand at the girl. But before he could fire the spell, a disarming spell hit his hand out of nowhere and his wand flew out of his hand. The last thing he saw of Jocelyn was a fair guy joining her as she turned round the corner into an alley. When he reached there himself, she had left.

The moment they flashed back at their residence, Alano let out a whoop of excitement as Jocelyn crumpled on the floor catching her breath.

"Do you have such excitement every time you go into the wizarding world? I want to be there. Every time."

"You are crazy! This was fun? It was like I am a criminal running away. Thanks for doing nothing." She finished sarcastically.

"Hey, I was nearby ready to help, but you had the situation in hand. I did disarm him at the end though."

"You did? Wow! That must be driving him crazy thinking who did it. What is old goat thinking? Is he senile anymore? Hey wait a minute… he did not see you now, did he?"

"He may have, he may have not. Doesn't matter. It's not like we will cross paths that anyway. It is good though, maybe his brain will sharpen with all the thinking he will do now."

Both of them ended up laughing there on the grass, till Hedwig decided it was enough and pecked Jocelyn on her head. They spent the rest of the day relaxing.

The next day they went for shopping, both in the muggle world and another wizarding district in the morning. The visit went without any trouble. In the evening they went to a shopping street of fairies. It was high up on a mountain; on a cold snowy mountain top.

Jocelyn held her arms around her torso inside her thick cloak, shivering yet looking around in wonder, "Wow! Just wow!"

Alano smiled at her wonderment as he cast a warming charm on her and pulled up the hood of her cloak, "Welcome to _Bosque Boulevard._ "

It was like a small community of shopping stalls placed among the trees a forest; a forest whose ground was covered with snow. It was apparently well warded that no other but fairies could come in without invitation. The stalls were spread over a small area, each having the privacy of its own canopy of trees. The stalls themselves were all interwoven arts of structures and greenery. There were no loud voices or announcements, maybe a random bargain or an explanation. The stall that Alano led them to was a cloth stall. It was built between two lines of trees, like a green tent draped with vines, flowers and roots. It was beautiful.

"Good evening sir and madam! Would you like to browse my stall?" asked the receptionist. She was a fairy too, of course. She looked just a few years older than them, with grey wings folded behind her, a cute face with a pleasant smile.

"No thank you" Alano replied, "I am here to collect a pre-ordered package in the name of Alano Drestoir."

"Oh Mister Drestoir!" She gushed, "Of course I have your package ready. My mother and I made them with utmost care and precision. Ah the very fact that you would wear one of our sewing confirms that our works are good enough to reach your ears. You should have looked at the faces of others when they learned that we received an order from you. You are very handsome, please be careful of poachers and cheaters. They are plenty nowadays. Who is she? Why is she hiding in her cloak? Why did you bring her?" She said all of it in rapid succession.

"She is my friend. The ones I have ordered are for my friends as well as me. Thank you for your quick work. Now, if you could retrieve it quick too…"

The fairy girl jumped and hurried into the stall, and came out with a shrunken trunk. "They will enlarge as you take them out."

Alano wasted no time in paying and leaving. Back at their residence, Jocelyn had a tough time controlling her laughter as she reflected back on how the fairy gushed at him. Alano's reply only made her laugh harder; he said that was not a place he frequented to, so the reaction was quite mild for fear he won't come back again.

The next day her friends visited. Jocelyn had just finished with her cooking when Dobby popped beside her.

"Miss Joy, your friends are here. Mister Alano is telling them about your days till now."

"There goes my peace. Will you please arrange the table as planned? I will dish up the items. Then you can set them up and come tell me. I will be with them in a moment."

When she came to her friends sitting under a tree, her heart swelled at seeing the group. These were people who cared, to whom her choices mattered and who wished her happiness. Alano noticed her and called her to them.

"Finally! Our cook is here. How long does it take to cook just breakfast? You've been there for hours." Alano teased her. Jocelyn wiped away her tears as she chuckled and sat down by them. Daphne rolled her eyes at the fairy, "Oh you don't know Jocelyn that well then. She is an extraordinary cook, as bad as addicted to it. Just give her a reason and she will live happily in the kitchen. She is like a house-elf in the kitchen."

Just then Dobby popped beside her, "Please don't insult our work ethics Miss Daphne; even house elves rest and do some other chores away from kitchen. Miss Joy has been in there since morning. She missed her sleep, missed her morning exercise, misses her… omph!"

Jocelyn slapped a hand on his mouth, "That's enough thank you. Is everything set?" Dobby nodded and smiled, "You will be praising Miss Joy by the end of the meal. Her hard work has produced tasty results. I'll wait for you there. Hope you have a big appetite." And he popped away again.

Jocelyn smiled at her friends, "Hey guys! It feels good to see you again."

"Nice to see you well Joy. Hell, you look better than I've ever seen you." Neville replied.

"How are all of you? I'm sorry I did not invite Fleur Nev, I'm just not sure…"

"Hey hey! It's okay. You are not friends yet. Even I don't know how far we will go…"

Luna cut him off, "Oh you'll go far. Far enough for mastery, marriage, sex and kids. Don't worry" Everyone burst out laughing as Neville reddened.

"So you are staying at Hogwarts this break?"

"Of course, the ball is two days after Christmas. And at Hogwarts, we get to sneak out like this with you. Now that's fun."

"Yeah School is now boring without you and your adventures. I've gotten pretty used to them." Neville sighed.

The twins started then,

"Alano dear was telling us about…"

"the 'run from Albus' story…"

"but can we finish it…"

"at the breakfast?"

"We are hungry." Their stomachs growled in unison as if finishing their speech.

Jocelyn wanted to treat her friends, for they cannot visit on Christmas except for a short while. So she went all out preparing breakfast for them. The group came to a large oval wooden table under a shade of a big tree. There were seats all around for everyone, even for Dobby, Hedwig and Fawkes. The table was laden with cutlery and many varieties of breakfasts. There were sausages, bacons, pancakes, croissants, noodles, pizza, pasta and cutlets, along with the usual toasts, salad, fish, meat, and beans. To drink there were lime soda, tea and orange juice; to finish it with pastries and ice cream. It was a feast fit for gods. All the friends settled immediately and slowly enjoyed the food throughout the morning, with chatter, jokes and stories. All of them had a good time, though none dared to eat anything more the rest of the day.

The day before Christmas was spent decorating a Christmas tree, arranging the accommodation for their visiting friends, studying and just chatting. It was during one chat just before midnight that Alano brought up an issue bugging him.

"Joy, why don't you touch anyone?"

Jocelyn stilled, and Alano hurriedly added, "I know you faced abuse, and it will take time to be comfortable with people. What I am asking is why _You_ don't initiate contact. This way you would be in control, isn't it?"

"Why would anyone want me to do that?"

"Oh come on. Your friends were dying to give you a big hug. You don't understand how happy you will make them just by giving one."

"I don't know, I never…"

"Never tried, I know. Let us start now. Here, give me a hand shake." Seeing her hesitation, he added, "Joy, delete all the false ideas your relatives gave you, just for one moment. You are a great friend, and you have one here for you. Close your eyes and listen to me. Trust me."

Jocelyn took a deep breath, closed her eyes and held out one trembling hand.

"Now Joy, listen. Please don't let in any negative thoughts you have been fed. Do you like me as a friend?"

She nodded.

"Do you trust me to never harm you?"

She nodded quickly.

"Do you believe that I like you as much as you like me, maybe more?"

This time Joy hesitated.

"Friends are not made in heaven Joy. Friends are made in life, when you like a person enough share your life. I like having you in my life. Before all this, I was alone in the crowd. Now in our small group of friends, I feel like I can tackle any challenge with you all by my side. It is…"

As Alano continued telling her his feelings on friendship, he slowly touched her fingers. She shivered and pulled back her hand. But he coaxed it forward again and put his palm on top of hers, telling her to hold it and give a shake. Jocelyn hand sweat as she held his hand, but after a moment she could hold it firmly. She memorized all the sensations that touch was giving her. Comfort, confidence and company. It was not painful like Durselys, nor dominating like Hermione's or influencing like Draco's. It was… friendly.

Slowly, Alano scooted closer to her as he moved his hand up hers, keeping the contact. Soon they were sitting next to each other, with their hands across each other shoulder.

"Now I have given the biggest, truest and best speech of my life. You believe that we are friends right? Good! Now open your eyes."

Green eyes met blue ones; kind, happy blue ones they were. Alano smiled at her. Jocelyn braved her other hand over his another shoulder and pulled him into a hug slowly. Alano was shocked, he did not expect her to do this and so was late to respond. Taking his delay as rejection, Jocelyn started pulling back.

"Wait! What happened?"

"Umm… sorry that was too forward of me."

"Jocelyn Elaine Potter! Has my speech even gone into your head? A hug is normal. I was just surprised. Come here! Good, now the next time you want to hug somebody, think of all the positive feelings you have for them and you'll do fine."

He pulled her into a hug. At first she stilled, but then relaxed after a while, and returned his hug.

In the towns down the mountains, the bell stuck 12.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **What do you think?**

 **Coming up: Neol break, part II. This will have some customs of different races introduced.**


	19. Noel Break - II

The friends from Hogwarts had decided to come in the early hours of the morning, and Jocelyn was ready for them. She had placed all the Christmas presents under the tree and had packed all the treats she wished to give them. The friends arrived 6 am sharp.

"MERRY CHRISTMAS!"

Jocelyn laughed as they all shouted the greeting.

"Welcome! Welcome! How are you all?"

"Good good. Now where are the presents? Ah, there's the tree." Neville went to it with his own present which he placed under the tree. Finally, they all settled around the presents.

"Okay then, Santa! Come on, give us our presents!" Luna said happily.

So went the next hour, distributing presents amidst lots of fun and teasing. But the friends could not stay for long, so they had to pack up soon.

"Okay then Joy, stay safe, stay happy. We will meet again, whenever possible. Okay." Daphne swiped off the tears under Joy's eyes. "Hey, don't cry now. It's not like we are leaving forever or something. We always are in contact, by mail and by heart."

"Yeah I know. I just miss you guys."

Luna stepped next to Daphne, "We think of you every moment we spend together ourselves. We are friends, now and forever, right?"

Jocelyn nodded. As the friends turned to leave, she resolved her heart. "Umm Luna…"

Luna immediately turned around with the rest, "Yes?" she asked with a knowing smile.

"Can I..." Jocelyn gulped, "Can I hug you?"

While the others showed pleasant surprise, Luna wasted no time coming to her and taking her in a gentle hug. Jocelyn stilled, her heart beat hard, but as Luna slowly rubbed her back, she relaxed. _Luna is her best friend. Hugging is normal, and wanting to hug your best friend is no crime. She would never hurt me._ Saying this to herself, she tightened her arms around the girl. Luna finally laughed as she let her go.

"Thank you."

Jocelyn narrowed her eyes at her, "You knew?"

Luna smiled mischievously, "No. I had a… intuition!"

Everybody laughed and the next few minutes they spent hugging the life out of Jocelyn. She never felt so alive.

Finally they left and she turned to Alano. He was smiling at her. "See what I told. Your hug only made them happier."

Jocelyn nodded with teary smile and ran to hug him too. He welcomed her into his arms. Somehow, she felt just right there.

While humans dined and exchanged gifts on the Christmas, it was customary for fairies to spend the day with nature. They may go out on picnics, celebrate as a group in the woods, or even go for a stroll in the garden for the day, but it was a day meant for connecting with the nature. The only necessary event for the day was to pray greetings to the sun and the moon in the evening when they were both together, thanking them for giving them life.

So, soon after the meet, Alano got ready and went out into the wildness all around, admiring the view. He heard her footsteps come near and smiled.

"May your prayers be answered and happiness accompany you on this Noel, Alano!" Jocelyn greeted him. He spun around to look at her in surprise; he never guessed she would learn the fairies' greetings.

"May your prayers be answered and happiness accompany you too, Joy." He replied, "Where did you learn our greeting? Who taught you?"

She shrugged playfully, "Somewhere… someone."

He narrowed his eyes at her, "Now you are mocking me… tell me who told you this. Wait… you told me you arranged the day to include both our wishes. Who told you what I wish for?" He stepped towards her as if stalking a prey.

Jocelyn smiled and took a step back, "Not telling. They prefer you do know."

"Last chance Joy, tell me who or I'll tickle you." He curled his fingers for show.

Jocelyn turned around and ran, shouting, "Only if you catch me." She ran and ducked and dived, trying to lose him in the thick of the woods around. Finally after a while when she could not hear him anymore, she stopped to catch her breath. She had just leaned back on the bark of a tree when Alano jumped before her from the sky and pinned her hands to the tree above her head.

"Eeeek…" She froze.

"Shhh… remember. I am your friend and won't hurt you. Calm down."

It took a few moments but she managed to.

"That said" he smiled dangerously, "I stick to my word."

He releasing her hands was the only hint she got before he started tickling her sides. She wriggled, squirmed, bent in half and jumped around trying to get free, laughing madly all the while. Finally when she could not take anymore, she gave up saying "Stop. Stop. I'll tell you. I'll tell you."

She slumped on the ground at the base of another tree, holding her sides and shivering slightly, "This is tickling? And you call this fun?"

"No diversions… speak."

"Okay okay, Timothy and Sally told me."

"My house-elves? Those little traitors… how did you even get in touch with them?"

"Dobby, of course. Do you know that house-elves have a vast network of contacts and communication? But I have tell you, your house-elves are dead-sharp and loyal. It took me a lot of convincing before they agreed to share."

"What did they share?"

"Just a few tidbits… like your general customs, greeting for Noel, the evening prayers and that you always wish you can play in water without any disturbances."

"A lot then… hmmm."

Jocelyn got to her feet and dusted herself off, "Shall we go then? We are wasting time."

Their idea for fun in nature included hiking down the mountain along the river till where it formed a small waterfall and a lake. Jocelyn's skill at hiking was pathetic and it was all up to Fawkes, Hedwig, Dobby and Alano to balance her at every step. Finally they reached the lake and wasted no time in diving in. They played and splashed at each other, having fun.

At one moment, Alano looked at his company. Never would he have expected a day when he would be playing in the water like a child and have no one bother him. Never had he expected a human to be comfortable enough to have fun with him. Then again, this was Joy, his best friend, one who never judged or expected anything in return for her friendship. He made a sincere wish that day, that he would have a mate just like her, who would see him for his own self."

By noon, they were exhausted and ravenous. They devoured the food without any comment and then fell asleep under a tree in moments. When evening approached, they prayed to the nature. They lit a small fire, took some water in one hand and soil in another and sat down feeling the wind. With these in focus, they thanked the nature for letting them live and for endowing them with all the means to live.

After that, it was Jocelyn's wish. They did something she always wanted to do – play with kids in an orphanage. She had already arranged the Christmas night with one of them in a nearby town, along with a good donation in name of her parents. Disguising themselves as muggles, they spent the whole evening with the kids, playing childish games, treating everyone to ice creams, sharing stories (simplified and modified of course) and so on. When they came back, it was already past midnight.

"So how was your Noel with me, Hasan?"

He stepped near her and took hold of her hands in his, "You have given me a day I will remember and rejoice forever Joy. However my life goes here forth, this day will always be in my memory, that's how special it is. Thank you."

"You've taught me something beautiful too, Hasan. Thank you." She said looking at their linked hands, "Guess this will be a patronus worthy memory huh?"

"Definitely!"

They stood on the meadow border for a while looking into the stars, each contemplating what their life was going towards.

Segrace was excited for this trip, and this showed in his work in the break. He worked harder, thought faster, learnt quicker and even won the annual competition gracefully. Of course, his elders thought it was due to his stay at Amictos, but whatever. So he wasted no time in the morning calling Dobby to take him to Jocelyn's place. He arrived to the living room of the trunk, where both Alano and Jocelyn were waiting.

"Hey Segrace! Welcome. Good to see you." Alano said as he shook hands with the dracken.

"Welcome Grace, how are you?" Jocelyn smiled at him too, but fumbled her hands in her lap.

"I am good. Belated wishes for Noel. So what new happened this break?"

Alano noticed the fidgeting of Jocelyn and cleared his throat. Jocelyn nodded at him and stepped forward as Alano spoke in the background, "Taught Joy something new."

"What… oh!" Segrace felt rather than saw Jocelyn walking up to him and wrapping her arms around him. He smiled at Alano as he hugged her back, "Good to see you getting comfortable with us Joy. Does it mean you won't flinch when I pat your back next time?"

Jocelyn shrugged her shoulder as she smiled at him, "I'll try."

"That's all I ask." He patted her shoulders and released her. Just then there were two flashes behind them as Serine and Folana arrived together.

"Welcome Serine, Folana! How are you?" Jocelyn wasted no time as she ran to them and hugged them, shocking them to silence. Only when both Alano and Segrace started laughing did the silence break.

"Well well, we are not letting you out of our sight if you keep growing up in blink of an eye." Folana wiped her fake tears. Everybody laughed as Jocelyn blushed. Everybody settled around having tea and chatting as they waited for the rest of the group. Hedwig looked at Jocelyn.

 _We will go to your Goblin friend and see if he wishes to come. Okay?_

"If you are willing, please do. Just be careful. He is still at Gringotts and I don't want anyone to harm you both."

Hedwig and Fawkes nodded and flashed away. With a loud pop, the elves arrived with Dobby, still bickering.

"I am the one who got you out. I'll go first."

"I am the lady; I should get the first chance."

"I would have given you that, but you take so much time getting ready. We are going to be late because of you. So I get to go first."

"Come on, it's not like… Oh, we arrived." Nefira looked around in surprise at the silently laughing faces around.

"And you do not listen to me when I say I can take both of you together." Dobby raised his hands in the air, "Kids these days, they just don't listen."

Saelig backpedalled, "Sorry Dobby. Hey guys, how are all of you. Sorry we are late, but this lady just won't get ready. Hope you all had a good Noel this break. You know… Hmph!" His dialogue got cut off when Jocelyn suddenly hugged him, surprising him too. Happily, he hugged her, lifting her off the ground and twirling her around with a 'Whoop'. Jocelyn was immediately snatched from his arms by Nefira, who in turn hugged Jocelyn. Everyone laughed at the funny expression mixture of sad, happy, ecstatic and disappointed look on his face.

Hothar arrived with Hedwig into this atmosphere of fun, and was aptly shocked when Jocelyn hugged him too. He opened his mouth but no words came out, so he was left gaping like a fish. This brought out another round of laughter. Finally Jocelyn welcomed him when everyone quieted down.

"Joy, thank you. Good to see you all."

"Okay, now that we all are here, let's get out. I am getting trunk-sick." Serine joked. They all agreed and climbed out of the trunk, everyone appreciating the scenario around. Jocelyn led them all to the dining tabled arranged under the tree and they all had a happy brunch sharing their Noel experiences.

"Okay, so now that we are fed, Hasan, this is your party now. What have you planned for us?" Jocelyn asked him.

"Oh… Umm… just relax and have fun?" he said hesitantly. Apparently he had not planned anything.

Saelig shook his head, "That warns me not to give any planning part of the event to you. Okay I'll say. Shall we go to a theatre in our area? We can enjoy a play."

Hothar snorted, "Yeah, the elves will welcome goblins and centaurs with open arms, won't they?"

"Oh right, that won't work. Nor can we go out to eat together. Oh, why do the different races keep away from each other so much. It takes out all the fun." Saelig's complain sparked an idea in Folana.

"Hmm, I am sure my people will not be against having all of you together. This way we can show you our home, and then if everything goes well, anyone of you can even have a summer visit for a few days there."

Hothar thought out aloud, "I like the idea. Maybe then I can convince my people to let you all in the next time too. Joy already is in King Ragnok's good graces, so that's half the battle won."

Alano, Segrace and Saelig kept silent as their races were hidden for their own reasons, and they would not be so open about the invitation. After a bit of discussion, they decided that they would spend the last day with the centaurs. Today and tomorrow they would stay in Joy's place.

Thus the first day went playfully, with everyone enjoying themselves in the woods, the lake and in the air.

On Alano's birthday, he woke up early in the morning to greet the sun. The chancel was not a long event, it was just a small ceremony, for which Segrace and Saelig had agreed to accompany him.

"Good morning Alano, Happy Birthday!"

"Thank you Saelig."

"May I ask you something? Why were you so hesitant to bring up the topic of chancel in front of other friends?"

"I do not want them to look at me differently. I do not know what the perceptions of others regarding adulthood are, and did not want to risk alienating anyone."

"I am not sure I understand, but each to their own. So you said we have to do the ceremony in the morning?"

"Yeah, let's just wait for Segrace to come."

The three boys went to the lake beside the meadow. Saelig and Segrace sat on either side of Alano and held his hand as he let lose his magic to merge with the surrounding magic.

Saelig then spoke in a formal voice, "Alano Hasan Drestoir, we welcome to your chancel and are here to judge your intentions. Do you wish to take charge of yourself and accept your actions or inactions as your own?"

Alano replied yes.

It was Segrace next, "Do you wish to let free your magic and let it be a companion to your actions and not the reason?"

"Yes"

Then both spoke at the same time, "Then know that your decisions hence forth will be your own, and you should not hide behind the masks of authority and old to explain your wins and losses. You are a free person now to bind and unbind yourself to whomever you wish, and it should have no other reasons than your own."

"I agree."

"Then, by prayer of magic and nature who gave us this chance to live, let us lose our binds and come forth as our own."

Alano then concentrated on his magic and any binds that were placed on it in lieu of him being a child. Surprising all three, the magic of the three emerged and engulfed them in bright light. When it subsided, the three boys felt stronger, calmer and though they did not know then, their bodies developed some. They looked at each other.

Alano was the first to speak, "That was amazing. In our place, they say that sometimes it happens like this with a magically strong person. I feel stronger now. Thank you. Ummm.. Guys?" he looked at them to find them looking awkwardly at themselves.

"Sorry Alano" Segrace replied, "But what did you say about this ceremony? Why do I feel different?"

"This is done in the same way. Two people accompany the person, say the vows and then break the binds on the magic, placed both intentionally and unintentionally."

"What do you mean unintentional?" Saelig asked him.

"Well, we ourselves place some binds on our magic, due to our fears or experiences, and this ceremony is supposed to break them too, for us to have no excuse. This is what is supposed to be an adult, I guess."

"I guess I understand then." Segrace said happily, "You said that fairies do it with two trusted adults. They already have no binds on their magic. Well since you did with us and we are not adults, it broke binds on our magic too."

"Wow, great." Saelig said happily.

All three of them smiled at each other and went back. The rest of the day was spent in celebrating Alano's birthday and exchanging gifts that they missed doing for Noel.

The last day they went to the Centaurs. It was a different colony, somewhere in Australia. The Centaurs were not prejudiced like the others and welcomed the group. They enjoyed the day in the woods, learning about them and having fun in general.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **Please do review how you liked this chapter. I felt it a bit boring myself, maybe because I am more excited about the events that are going to happen next.**

 **Coming up: Bcak at Amictos and Dumbledore will be seen too.**


	20. Whom to serve

The drackens lived in clans, which humans might call kingdoms. They were ruled over by a king. The king usually followed the advice of the seniors, who were the elected members of the clan. Marshalt Skwelopin was one of the seniors in the judging panel who judged over the contest for the year during the Noel Tide. It was customary to hold one for every Noel tide, and he expected one of the older drackens to win the dueling contest. He thought he would forward the winner as the chief of security for the prince.

The youngest dracken, Brinhat won the match. Well he was still studying, so he could not elect him as intended. So he forwarded the runner up for the post. But the senior was intrigued by the younger dracken. Was being in Amictos such an advantage? Would someone who studies there become so skilled? Marshalt knew that Brinhat was from a Warrior family, that he would have to pledge himself to someone once he finished his studies. Everyone was expecting him to pledge to the prince. He wondered if he could divert his attention to himself instead.

Being a senior was not hereditary; one has to be elected by the previous seniors, the king or the populace. It also happened that a senior was evicted from the post if a proof of treachery or inefficiency was produced. So, all the seniors were always cautious and wary of each other. For all they know, they could be cheated, lied to, hurt or even murdered to remove them from their post. That was the reason why Marshalt was so interested in Brinhat. If he could get him as a guard, then he would be safer from attacks. Also, if Brinhat was as smart as he was brave, then maybe he could help him in his consultations too. So taking permission from the king, Marshalt came to Amictos to observe him.

Segrace was excited, "Hi friends!"

"Why is our calm senior looking so excited today?" Serine teased him, but he only smiled in return.

"I got a letter today from one of our seniors, Marshalt Skwelopin. He is coming to Amictos to visit me tomorrow. He writes that he is very impressed by my performance at the contest this year, so he wants to look at my surroundings and education.

"Didn't he already know that you study at Amictos?" Hothor asked him.

"He did, maybe. But I came into his notice by winning the duel."

"So why are you feeling so honored?" Jocelyn asked him curiously. But Segrace took it in the wrong way, "I was the most junior among the contestants this year. Winning the contest is a big deal amongst drackens."

"Of course, I am not denying that. I am merely curious why he is coming now."

"To judge my talent and forward me to a good post when I graduate. Being from a warrior family, I am not against fighting dangers. But what irks me that we are automatically assumed to be nothing more than dedicated guards and servants. I am expected to pledge myself to the prince, but I don't want that." He looked at Jocelyn accusingly, "And that's why I participated in that contest. And I won against the strongest. Is it so bad that he is impressed with me?"

Jocelyn raised her hands, "Whoa! I was just asking if you know the real motive behind his visit. Why would a senior take time off specifically to come to you? From what you said to us, senior is a very high and busy position in drackens."

Segrace felt sad. He thought Joy was not impressed by his win. It never clicked on him that she just doubted the senior's motives. So without thinking he said, "Joy, just because no one is impressed with you in your world does not mean the same will happen in mine. I won a contest with the best; don't throw it away like nothing."

Jocelyn jerked back, as if slapped. She stood up while trying to control her tears, and took out something from her bag and threw it at him, "Well Congratulations! I don't think you would want to be with a mere commoner anymore."

She walked away quickly, but everyone still saw the hurt on her face and tears in her eyes. Segrace was shocked too. He slowly opened the package that his friend had thrown at him. It was a beautiful stone hanging on a chain along with a note. It said, ' _To the best among the best! Congratulations! Let not be your strength be used against your wisdom or heart.'_

"Is it what I think it is?" Hothar's voice made him look up from the note. Hothar was holding the stone in his hand with wide eyes.

"What is it?" He asked.

"Hold it and tell me yourself." When Segrace took the stone, it filled him with a feeling of friendship. He looked up in surprise, "What is this I am feeling?"

It was Saelig who answered, "This stone portrays the feelings others around you have towards you. It's a wonder she could make it!"

"Made it?"

"Of course, these stones have to be imbibed with magic with the specific intent of what it wants to do. It is not easy, you know. To cast a spell with a specific purpose is what we do, it is quick and instantaneous. To channel magic with a single intent for a long time, even if you take breaks, is very hard. That's why artifacts are so precious; and their creators so rare."

"Oh!" Segrace was amazed and yet disappointed in himself.

"Why did you have to be so harsh on her Segrace?" Folana asked him feeling a bit crossed, "She was just asking you about your senior's motives. It was clear that she did not trust them. Are you so high on your contest that you think everyone is out to battle you?"

"I…" Segrace did not have anything to reply. He was ashamed, yes. Alano shook his head, "You should better go and apologize. You've lost me my tutor in runes."

As everyone laughed at Saelig smacking him on his head, Segrace got up to do just as told to. But right then a patronus of a sparrow appeared there. It spoke, "Brinhat, I am in the premises of Amictos. I am expecting you to be at your door when I arrive."

Segrace immediately put on his chain, collected his things and left saying goodbye to his friends. In his cottage, he arranged for some snacks and waited. I another few minutes, there was a knock on the door.

"Greetings senior Marshalt Skwelopin. I am honored to have your presence with me." He bowed to the senior who nodded and entered the cottage.

"Greetings Brinhat. I see that you are doing well here."

"Thank you sir. Would you like to have some refreshments?"

"You know I don't trust others with my food. It is never prudent."

"But sir I…"

"Do not worry, Brinhat, I am not speaking against you. It is just my habit. I would never belittle a fine fighter like you." The senior smiled at him to put him at ease.

Segrace felt uneasy with him. He felt like the senior did not trust him, and that he was looking down on him. He wondered why he felt like that; and then he remembered. The Stone! Of course! The gift that Jocelyn gave him today seems to be working on full throttle, for he could sense many emotions not his own when he focused. He could sense the distrust, but that could be just because the senior did not know him. He could sense caution; that could be expected too for a senior. He could sense superiority, but that could also be expected from someone of his position. What he could not digest were the greed, ownership and domination he was sensing. The senior was portraying a completely different persona to what he was feeling inside.

"Yes senior. May I know the purpose of your visit? You never mentioned that in your note."

"Ah yes. You see, the prince needed chief of security, and I decided that the winner of this year would be forwarded by me for that position. But since you are still a student, I could not spare you and so forwarded the runner up for that position. Tell me Brinhat, what would you like to do once you finish your education? Whom would you promise yourself to?"

"Isn't that too early to decide, senior?"

"Maybe, maybe not. You should know what the people are expecting of you. As far as my knowledge goes, your mentors are expecting you to pledge yourself for the prince. Do you know this?"

He nodded, now suspicious of the senior's intentions.

"Are you agreeable to do that?"

He debated whether or not to tell his intentions, and the senior caught that.

"I see that you are hesitating Brinhat. Speak your thoughts."

Segrace spoke carefully, "Senior, please forgive me, but I am still undecided on their direction to speak my thoughts. Why are you asking me?"

Marshalt stood up and turned his back to Segrace, in excuse of inspecting the view from the window, "Brinhat! The war amongst the dracken is rising again, you already know this. Kalkoff has already wrecked havoc in the dracken clans of the north, and has started his conquest on our side too. I am afraid of when we will be attacked. I am afraid for our prince, but more than that I fear that he would be controlled through corrupt ministers. If you could guard a person who cares for the welfare our clan, then your honor would be upheld."

"But Senior… if that's the situation, then were the prince and clan informed? I received no such news from my mentors. We need to plan our defense in such a case."

"Ah! Leave that to us, Brinhat. You are to dedicate your life to guard the worthy, just like your parents. It is what being a Brinhat means. What is being done to protect the clan is the headache of the seniors and the King. I will take my leave; I have other matters to ponder over. Please think about what I said."

Marshalt left then, and Brinhat wasted no time in hurrying out to the woods, for he knew that Jocelyn would take refuge with the dragon when upset. It was just like her. And he was right! Jocelyn was sitting in the nest that the dragon had built for her kids, playing with the youngsters. They were already of her height now, and soon will start learning to fly. Already, the dragon kids were puffing out short bursts of fire. But not fearing all that, Jocelyn was cooing to and playing with them.

He stopped just outside the nest. "Joy!" he called her name softly. Jocelyn stiffened in her seat and turned around.

"Segrace!" She replied in a calm yet flat tone.

"Will you forgive me Joy?"

She sighed and turned back to the kids, "You have nothing to apologize for Segrace. I was overstepping my bounds."

He sighed, "Please Joy! I am sorry. Come here once, please."

Jocelyn petted the dragon kids one last time before she came out of the cage and stood with Segrace under a tree. She looked away towards the lake, not willing to show her emotions. But thanks to the stone, Segrace could sense them all. He could sense that she was hurt. He could also sense a feeling of inadequacy and unworthiness she always carried around herself. What surprised him were the positive feelings she had for him -friendship, care…. and love. That feeling was beautiful. He let it wash over himself for a moment before he spoke.

"As a member of my family, it is customary that I would have to pledge myself to someone. It started as a beautiful tradition, where my family members would do it for someone they wanted to support and help. But now it has degraded to being guards and servants. I don't want to serve anyone like that. Everyone in my clan expects me to pledge to the Prince. I would like very much to fight under him, but not as a servant. That's why I was so excited that senior Marshalt was coming. He could take away from the tradition and let me participate in a better purpose."

He held Jocelyn by her shoulders and turned her around to face him. He put a palm under her chin and lifted her face

"I am sorry that I over reacted in my excitement. I know you never say anything to belittle me. It's just…" he looked away from her, "I had hoped I would do something more worthwhile than being a guard. Guess I am never meant to be anything else."

Jocelyn placed a hand on his arm and another on his cheek, and turned him to face her, "You are meant to be whatever you wish to be. Do not restrict yourself to what other assume of you. I would never want that for you."

Segrace smiled sadly, "But the senior said…"

"The hell to what the senior said. I will tell you again, I do not understand his intentions. Why did he ask of you anyway?"

"He wanted me to think whom I would want to pledge myself to. He said that the prince is in danger from Kalkoff, and I should better guard someone who is an honest adviser to the prince."

"That self meaning low rat…" Jocelyn cursed, "You do understand that he was here to covet you for himself."

Segrace nodded. Jocelyn smiled and stepped closer to him, placing a hand on his heart, "Grace!" Segrace smiled, "Follow your heart and never let others dictate you. If freedom is what you want, then you should strive for that. If you really have to pledge to someone, then select one who sees you as an equal, as a companion rather than guard; and one whose values and motive matches yours. You are special Grace, never let anyone convince you otherwise."

Saying that, she hugged him. Segrace was filled with love so profound that he could feel it envelop him. He was filled with peace and at that instant, he wanted nothing more than this feeling to never end.

"By the way" Jocelyn said after a while when they broke the hug, "Who is Kalkoff?"

 **Author's Note:**

 **I am off my vacation, so my updates will take more time, for I edit and re-edit the plot before I post. So near with me and please review.**

 **Coming up: Information about dark lords and Dumbledore finding out something,,, wait for next chapter to know more.**

 **pss... Dumbledore will be punished soon for his crime in a goblin ruled bank.**


	21. Seer Talk

Jocelyn was surprised to learn that all species had their own version of dark lords. It could be a shark in water which kills unnecessarily and eats more than its fill; it could be an evil dragon which kills all the kids of other dragons; it could be a basilisk which kills all around with its fatal glare; it could be an acromantula killing all predators around to increase her area of hunt; it could be a terrorist causing havoc among muggles; or it could be someone like Voldemort terrorizing the magical humans. Drackens had Kalkoff as their version of a dark lord. He was not the first, but he was most sadist one till date. The worst aspect with him was that he was able to influence many of the influential drackens to his side with his view of the new dracken world.

"Why isn't his view better?" Jocelyn had asked Segrace. His replied in a sad tone.

"He promises raising drackens to the top of the chain. He says that drackens should rule over all humanoid species, be it fairies, wizards, elves, or muggles. Being hidden from the rest of the world is a point being debated in our communities nowadays. Amidst that, this notion really caught the interest of many. But what those drackens fail to see in greed is that the path he proposes is filled with violence and terror. That was the point which made our ancestors step back into hiding initially."

Jocelyn then spent the next few days learning about the current state of various races. In muggles, there were a few terrorists like Osama Bin Laden, who were wrecking terror all over the world with their threats and attacks. In the wizarding world, Voldemort was the source of destruction, and who was defeated by her somehow. Among the drackens, it was Kalkoff who was rising to power steadily and was already attacking their clans subtly. What was surprising was the news that the elves had one dark lord at present. His name was Gladerr, and he was at peak in power now. That was the reason the elves were so hostile and unfriendly; they were living in difficult times.

Jocelyn had asked Saelig the reason for his terror too. The answer was quite unexpected.

"Gladerr is not out for conquest or ruling. He is out for power. No one knows how he does it, but he is able to drain an elf of magic and use it for himself or give it to others. He does not try any subtle ways to draw elves to be his followers. His lure is having power and the freedom to do as you please. The sad fact is that no one knows till date how he looks or what his next move would be. Hell, we don't even know for sure if the elf next to us is him or one of his followers."

Jocelyn also enquired if there were any dark fairies out there. Alano just smiled.

"Not right now. In our history we have very few dark fairies that rose powerful enough to create panic. But that does not mean there are no bad fairies. They just affect less number of people or do some change by manipulating people. You just have to be careful of them and know who is who."

As Jocelyn was digesting the news that the world was bigger than she knew and that no one alone is the center of the world, her friends from Hogwarts sent some more news to her.

The second task of the Triwizard tournament had been held after Christmas. The contestants had to compete and bring back their loved ones from inside the lake against all the creatures of the lake. While the task itself had gone without any hindrance, the contestants had hurt a few creatures of the lake, and this had angered them.

"Well, what else can you expect?" Jocelyn's irritation was obvious, "You just don't barge in with silly games into someone's home, hurt them and expect them to keep silent."

They were talking on hand held mirrors, which the twins had re-designed. The last time they had visited her, she had finally parted with the mirrors that were the communication links between her and Sirius. The twins were overjoyed and had wasted no time in tweaking them. They were still working on creating the 'memory retrieved camera', but for now they had succeeded in creating a camera for each of them, which could be connected to any other. Though any one can view only one other face on the mirror, it was now so designed that it would automatically change the focus to who was speaking. Other than themselves of course!

"Yeah," Neville agreed, "The problem with the wizarding world is that they divide the land and claim ownership, forgetting that it also belongs to other beings."

"So how are they showing their anger?"

"Simple, they have terrorized the people from coming near the lake. Both Dumstrang and Beauxbatons now must stay at Hogwarts, and no human is allowed near the lake."

Fred picked up from there, "What I don't understand is why they are punishing the guests and not the hosts."

Daphne rolled her eyes, "Come on duffer, what difference do looks, or robes, make to say… mermaids. To them, we are all just humans."

"So, what do you think, Jocelyn?" asked Luna, "Who are you assigning as your partner in talking with them?"

"No!" George paled, "She is not coming here."

"Yeah!" Fred continued, "She is not putting herself in danger again."

Luna just rolled her eyes, "As if. I am not asking her to come here. I am asking her to choose her partner." She said mischievously.

Jocelyn thought for a while and finally her thoughts caught up with Luna's. "Really? Would you be willing to learn?"

"Of course, maybe I will learn about some new sea creature unknown till now."

"Uh hum!" Neville interrupted, "Care to share with us mortal beings?"

"Well we had contacted with merpeople living near Amictos. Luna will learn to communicate with them and will be the negotiator."

"You can talk with merpeople?" The rest of the friends said at once. Jocelyn nodded shyly. But Daphne had another thought, "Didn't you say that you have mid-term exams coming up. Are you going to sacrifice again for these worthless Hogwarts people?"

"Umm… I am doing this for you all. And you are Hogwarts people. Anyway, only Hasan can communicate with them along with me right now."

"Can Alano teach me?" Luna said in excitement and a glint in her eyes.

"Hasan? I don't know. I will have to ask him. He would have exams too and…"

"And he is much smarter than you. Please Joy, ask him once. If he rejects, then I will not ask again. Please!"

Jocelyn did not understand her friend's persistence, but she agreed and asked him anyway. Hasan agreed happily, he was not against the idea to spending time with Joy's friends. So, he waited in Joy's cottage as Luna flashed in with Hedwig's help. She immediately moved to hug Joy before she turned to the fairy friend.

"Hello Alano!"

"Good morning Luna. Shall we go now?"

"Of course." She turned to Jocelyn, "I will be fine. He will be fine. Don't worry and study, got it?"

Jocelyn smiled and hugged her friend. Alano greeted her "see you later" before Fawkes flashed both to the same beach they had first visited. He first taught the mechanics to Luna before entering the water. When he was waist deep in water, he called out with his mind for the merpeople.

 _Greetings merpeople! I am Alano Hasan Drestoir, here to seek audience with you. Please respond if you can hear me._

No less than a minute passed when there was response from a mermaid. She talked as she quickly swam to the shore.

 _You are always welcome to our abode Drestoir. How are you?_

 _I am faring well, Simran. Good to see you. How fare the folk of ocean?_

 _They fare well. I see a new person with you today, not dear Joy. Is she unwell?_

Alano laughed at that, _She is doing well. She wanted to come visit you too. But she has to prepare for her tests and was stopped by almost everyone._

 _You did not, did you? You wanted her with you._

 _Simran!_ Alano exclaimed, embarrassed. But he was in for another shock too.

 _Of course sister,_ came the voice of Luna who came to stand beside him. She was immersed in the water to her shoulders, but still had a smile and the ever-present dreamy look on her face. Alano looked at her accusingly.

 _You already knew how to communicate?_

Luna shook her head, _No, but I pick up a few skills quickly I suppose._ She turned towards the amused mermaid, _How long do you think it will take the dracken, elf and fairy to come to their senses regarding their feelings, o fellow seer?_

Simran laughed in a melodious tune, _With your talk in the next few minutes, not long. But her happiness depends on how they act on it._

 _I agree._

Both nodded to each other, completely ignoring the confused Alano beside them.

 _So, what was the other reason you came here for._

 _To learn to communicate, as well as for your advice._

 _Unless you promise them no harm, conquest and bother, no being will allow another into their home. It will all depend on what your fellow humans will agree to. You might need the help of the other fighter in your group._

 _Thank you for your advice, Simran. I will heed to it and hope for the best._

Luna started backing out of the water. Just as Alano was about to turn around, Simran's voice stopped him.

 _Irrespective of others, You need to listen and follow your heart Alano. Your own happiness depends on it. Don't let pressure, expectations, fear and doubts affect your decision. But most of all, don't hurt Jocelyn. Farewell!_

Alano's eyes widened. He was surprised at the mention of Joy, but he was more shocked when he realized that they the two ladies were talking about him having feelings for her. Determined to get to the bottom of this, he hurried to Luna who was out of water and was waiting for him.

"What were both of you talking about, Luna?"

"An obvious truth. You, Saelig and Segrace are all affectionate with Joy. It is up to you how you act on it. Let that be cemented as unwavering friendship or let it evolve to passionate love… or none of the above."

"Are you crazy? We belong to different races. None of us can mate with her."

"No, the three races are just different evolutions of the human race. All of you can mate with her."

"Joy does not deserve someone like me, Luna."

For the first time, he saw a threatening look on the girl's face, "Are you implying that my friend is unworthy?"

But Alano did not waver, "Are you crazy? Of course she is worthy. It is I who am not. I am always fought over among my people, and always put in the middle of all politics. If she is with me, she will be cheated, bullied and manipulated by every fairy around her. I cannot do that to her. She is too special to be subjected to that."

Luna's expression suddenly changed from angry to sly, "Oh well, then I shall go and talk to Saelig and Segrace. Maybe they love her enough to stand by her throughout her life. My friend needs no less than pure love and utmost dedication, for she will return nothing less."

This irked the elf, "Are you implying that I do not love Jocelyn enough? That Segrace and Saelig love her more than me?" It took time for him to measure through the words he was saying, "Wait! Segrace and Alano love her too?"

"You are implying it yourself. And anyone can see that you three are navigating in that route. Maybe you will be a good friend and they will be the mates. Yeah, that will do." She said casually and started walking towards an amused Fawkes. Alano stood there lost, his heart battling with his mind, until, "Please Luna, don't leave me hanging like that. Please tell me clearly what you wanted to say. Why did you bring up this topic now?"

"Do you love her, Alano?"

"I do, yes, but…"

"I saw two vague visions about Jocelyn, Alano. In both, she is constantly fighting the darkness descending over her, giving her painful shocks every now and then. In one, she emerges from it completely battered and near the brink of death. In another, there are a few other people standing by her and they all emerge standing proud. It only says one thing; she will be victorious in her battle anyway. Other people standing with her will make the difference in how she is at the end. I don't want my friend hurt anymore, and you three right now have the most potential to hurt her in your competition."

"Don't put disputes among us friends, Luna." He said warningly. Luna just smiled at him.

"I am not. Alano, I am not forcing you into anything. Any of you. I am just helping you realize what all of you already feel. If I had not known you beforehand, I would not have hesitated to eliminate you or the other two when I realized where your feelings were heading. But you three are good guys."

"Three of us, Luna? I don't want to compete with the others for Joy's affection. I know that will hurt Joy more than anything."

"That is for you to decide. I would not have even hinted you, for love is gradual and develops slowly, but I see tough times ahead for Jocelyn. I just want to warn all of you, request you, beg you even, to not let your feelings affect your friendship with her. She will need the support soon. See… if you cannot accept being with her, that is your choice. But if that's the case, just be normal with her for the next three years she would be here. I don't want to see Jocelyn hurt anymore."

Alano's mind and heart were running a mile a minute. He needed time to think. But he had one question, "Are you really sure that Jocelyn will be happy amongst fairies, that she will be happy with me?"

Luna gave him a mysterious smile, "Alano, Joy has built a wall. Beyond that, she has nothing but love to give to the ones who are ready to accept it."

"That gives me no answer!" Alano raised his hands in the air.

"It gives all the answers you need, if you can find them."

With that, both of them travelled back along with Fawkes. Luna did not talk about that topic anymore, neither did Alano. He bid farewell and went to his cottage. She spent another hour just chatting with Jocelyn, before taking her leave. She did not tell the whole vision to him, but this much was what she could tell anyone. Her part here was done for now.

* * *

 **Author's note:**

 **Hey there guys... I wrote a few chapters the last month and will post them here. If you are still interested in the story, or are newcomers and like this story... I feel blessed. Please review.**

 **Well the Dumbledore part will take time, so you will have to wait for that.**

 **Coming up: Jocelyn's fears from her past cropping up.**


	22. Fears from the past

Jocelyn was tired. Her head hurt from all the reading she has done since morning. Add to that her anxious wait for news from her Hogwarts friends, and she had a killer headache. She had enough. She got up from her desk and decided to take a walk outside. The sun had just set and the stars had started to appear. Despite the chilling temperature, Jocelyn felt a calm she had seldom experienced before. Her life, at the moment, was the most peaceful it had ever been.

She let her feet carry her on, and soon found herself at the edge of the lake in the woods. It was frozen right now, with blankets of snow covering all around it. Somehow, the scenery of the lake was always mesmerizing, whatever the season it be.

"Good evening Joy!"

She jumped and slipped when she heard an unexpected voice. A laugh followed that greeting, which was followed by a hand coming into her vision. She looked up the hand to find Saelig smiling at her.

"You scared me!" She said accusingly, even as she took his hand to get on her feet.

"You were so lost Joy, that any sound would have startled you. I was just relaxing at my window when I saw you walking this way, so I followed. What are you doing here? Done with your studies?"

"Not even close, but I could not stuff another line into my brain anymore. My head is killing me with information overload."

Saelig laughed, making Joy narrow her eyes, "Yeah, laugh it up. Not everyone is a genius like you. Come to think of it, all my friends excel at least two subjects. Why am the only odd one out?" She whined playfully.

"Come on now Joy, I am sure you did not come out here to lament about your talent in studies."

She sighed, "You're right. I just wanted to be out. I sure don't know why my feet carried me out here. But you got to agree with me, this place look beautiful every time you look at it."

"Hmmm… that's true. You are not thinking of relocating here, are you?" He raised his eyebrows, but his tine was light. Jocelyn snorted at that thought, and then immediately covered her mouth. This led Saelig into another bout of laugh.

"Stop it Sael! This place indeed would be a good place to build a cottage, but it would be too isolated and I kind of like living with my neighbors now." She trailed off shyly.

"I am honored. Now that we are here anyway, would you like to skate on the lake?"

Jocelyn's eyes grew wide, "Eeek! Sorry… skate?"

Saelig looked at her suspiciously, "Yes." he said firmly.

"Umm… I haven't brought any skates, nor have you." She fidgeted.

He rolled his eyes, "Do you know magic or not. No, before you object about my abilities, let us try a simpler method. Dobby!" And before she could object, he had two pairs of skates in his hands, courtesy of Dobby. She was given no choice but to state the truth.

"I don't know how to skate!" She said in panic when her friend held up her skates towards her. He did not relent, instead just nodding at her to wear them. Sighing, she sat down and put them on. Saelig then held out both his hands to her. "Trust me, Joy." He said. Their eyes met for a few moments before she nodded and took his hands. Allowing her to rise at her own speed with his support, he slowly pulled her towards the iced lake. Jocelyn was nervous, she was literally shaking, both from her hands being held tight and the fear of falling.

"Please Joy, I would not harm you. I cannot, that would kill me to hurt a friend. Come on, we'll start slowly." He began instructing her about how to posture herself and where to concentrate her movements. Then they started gliding across the ice slowly, with Jocelyn's hands gripping Saelig's and her eyes on her feet. It took a several minutes for her to feel comfortable, and when she finally did feel so, she looked up at her instructor with a joyful smile.

Saelig, on the other hand, had his thoughts focused elsewhere. He, for some unknown reason, was reflecting all his time with the human in his hands. She was beautiful sure, but she was also more than that. He liked her kind heart, her patience, her determination, her tolerance, and her friendly nature. He admired her strong spirit despite all the troubles and pains she faced in her life. Sure, she was a person with low confidence and was one who would rather be in pain than hurt others. But then again, no one was perfect. He could imagine a life with her, and at that moment he felt confident that his life would be happy with her. The sudden realization shocked him; that he will be in love with a person of different race was a future he never ever thought of. Right at that moment, she looked up at him with a bright smile, and his heart gave a lurch. He wanted that smile always on her face, and that smile directed at him all his life.

That realized, he smiled back at her and increased the pace of their skating. Jocelyn did well for a few minutes, rejoicing her success, but then her skate slid too far and she stumbled into him. He stopped mid-skid to catch her, and his arms automatically went to her hips while hers on his chest. While his heart skipped a beat in pleasure at the sudden intimate position, Jocelyn shivered in fright as a memory of her uncle painfully squeezing her hips and pressing her body close to him invaded her mind. She immediately cried, "Master please no master…"

Sealig removed his hands from her hips in shock, but Jocelyn was already lost to her memory. She hugged herself tightly and kneeled on the ice, shivering all over. She was continuously mumbling, "Sorry master, I will be good. Don't punish me…"

Saelig knelt beside her, "Shhh Joy, I am sorry, did I hurt you? Joy, look at me please. Joy!" But getting no response from his friend he called out to her other friends in panic, "Dobby, Fawkes, Hedwig, help!" All three of them appeared immediately. The phoenixes understood her and immediately started singing a low melodious song, while calling her in their minds, _Joy, everything is all right. You are free from those monsters. Come out dear, you are safe here with us…_ and so on. But it was of no use either.

"What happened Master Elf Saelig?" Dobby asked in a hurry.

"I don't know. She was fine till now. She stumbled and I caught her, then she suddenly went like this."

Dobby looked at the phoenixes and his ears drooped. His eyes too filled with tears, "Oh no, Miss Joy is lost, lost in her memories of her relatives hurting her. Miss Joy, please, you are not with them." Dobby started. Saelig could not imagine being more shocked than he already was.

"Joy look at me. I am Saelig here, come on now. You are in Amictos, between your friends. I am your elf friend Saelig. Remember how you slapped me the first time we met. Bring out that fire Joy. We did nor even know each other and yet we sat together. Do you know why? I was…"

As he spoke those words remising all their memories together, he gently took her hands in his and slowly drew them away from herself. Slowly indeed, but her hands did come away from her crouch, and the words of all her friends around her slowly started sinking into her. Awareness came into her eyes a few minutes later, and the first thing she saw were the passionate blue slanted eyes. She looked around and found Dobby, Fawkes, Hedwig, Saelig and no one else around her. Finally feeling secure, she said a small "thank you" and promptly feinted.

Saelig caught her as she fell down, and skated to the shore with her in his arms. Then he held her out to Dobby for him to take her back to the cottage. But Dobby just shook his head and bowed, "I will get her room ready for her." He popped out then, and so did the phoenixes. Stunned, Saelig looked at the beautiful girl in his arms, and reflected on the revelation he had moments ago. He understood one thing, even if he did love her, it will take time for her to be able to accept him and be comfortably in his arms. But he was determined; he would win her over no matter how long or how hard, for he loved her and that was all there to it.

He walked back to the cottage slowly, looking at his love and cherishing the feeling of her in his arms. Other than the short rare hugs, he never got a chance like this, and he wanted to remember it and keep it close to his heart. He had just neared the cottage when Segrace and Alano hurried to the pair.

"What happened to her?" Segrace asked, but the elf shushed him and motioned him to come inside. The three of them walked inside silently and Saelig gently laid Jocelyn on her bed. Covering her with her quilt, they left the room and sat down on the sofa in her living room.

"We were out at the lake." Saelig started his recount at their questioning looks, "Actually I followed her when I saw her walking towards the forest. Anyway, the lake was frozen and I invited her to skate. She said she did not know, so I was holding her hands and we were skating. She stumbled once and I held her up by holding on her waist. That was all, and she started shivering and pleading her master to stop and that she will be good. I released her immediately, called for Dobby and the phoenixes. We all tried to bring her out of it. It took as many minutes, and then she looked around and fainted."

"What master?" Alano thought out loud.

Saelig hid his face in his hands, "Dobby says that I holding her waist unexpectedly invoked her memories of her relatives, from her childhood." He rubbed his face a few times to brush off his irritation before he looked up at his friends, "What… relative… does that to a child? What did he do that was so horrifying? Or more important question… why did he feel the need to do it? I… just cannot… cannot even begin to imagine her state. I knew she had insecurities, but for them to start back with her own relatives. This… they… I want to… I don't know… will killing them heal Joy of this pain?"

Segrace and Alano were silent. They both were in their own cottages when one phoenix each had flashed to them and urged them to move. Knowing it had to be linked to Jocelyn, they had not wasted time in rushing off. They were all thinking about the situation when the rest of their friends made it to the cottage. None minded that it was late at night, more concerned about their friend. And rightly so, for a big wave of magic knocked them all on the floor and a loud wail of cry came from the room. They all rushed up to the room to a sad sight. There was Joy on her bed thrashing and whimpering to some scary dream she had. Nefira went forward to shake her awake. But the moment her hand touched her arm, Joy was out of her bed and crouched in a corner.

"Joy?" Nefira said tentatively. Her voice made Jocelyn snap up her head, and look at her in confusion, "Nefi?" Nefira nodded.

"Oh!" Jocelyn looked around to assure herself of her surroundings and tried to stand up. Nefira immediately rushed to help her. Jocelyn eyes fell on all her friends standing in the room. She was confused, until she saw Saelig and the memory of the evening came to her. Shame welled up in her and she ducked her head from others, "I am okay guys."

Nefira could not see her like this anymore, "You are definitely NOT okay, Joy. Come on now, first freshen up and then we need to have a talk. Boys, go out, eat, sleep or something. I will tell you the important parts tomorrow. Fawkes, Dobby, you too should stay away tonight. Stay with the boys if you want. Hedwig, see if you can get Luna and Daphne here. Dobby will help you in contacting them. Shoo everybody." After a few minutes, all the girls in the group, including Hedwig, were in the hall having a sleepover. Joy fidgeted in her seat.

"Joy, we need to know. We want to know the situation with you. You cannot continue like this, Joy. You are a good friend to all of us, and…" Folana sighed, "Please Joy, tell us about yourself, your fears… the part that keeps this distance between us."

Jocelyn looked away, "I still don't know what you want from me…"

Serine placed a hand on her shoulder, "Let us start with what everyone knows. Voldy attacked you, killed your parents and then got defeated by you. You were placed by that Dumbles with your muggle aunt, who hates magic. Your godfather was sent to jail without a trial. All we know after that is that you got your letter and attended Hogwarts. What happened in between, Joy? How were those ten years in between?"

"Horrid, okay? They were horrid." Jocelyn shivered and cried as the memories she kept suppressed now did not stay back anymore. "My first conscious thought is always the dark cupboard and pain. They hid me away in a cupboard. I was to not make a sound, not when I had dirtied my pants, not when I was hungry, not when I am thirsty, not when I am scared, not when…." She was hyperventilating as the memories bombarded her, and the girls were scared. Nefira immediately lifted her into her lap and hugged her, mumbling comforting words to her as she rocked her. It took a few moments for Jocelyn to calm down, and then she started crying earnestly. Words spilled out of her mouth like a torrent, only interrupted by sniffs and hics. What terrified the females around her was her speaking the present tense; it was apparent that she was still plagued by them every single day.

"They hate me… my very existence… I am a burden to them… they don't want a freak… not a girl, not a kid, not a… always a freak… my classmates laughed at me when I said my name…. freak… their favorite was Duddley, not me, never me… he did nothing wrong… hit freak with a stone, just playing…. Stomp on freak's leg and break a bone, strong boy… push freak down stairs, freak fell on her own… steal freak's homework, freak is lazy… steal freak's food, freak greedy… I mow the lawn, I mop the house, I cook breakfast, but they don't give me anything to eat…nothing to drink… hungry for two days… they locked me in cupboard… why, because freak cheated and scored more than Duddley… I am useless good for nothing freak… and then I grow up and Duddley grows up… he is three years older than me, says he knows better… he walks in when I am in lawn… his meaty hands are all over me… he pinches my nubs… says I am not ready yet… I say to aunt, she locks me in cupboard for whole day and tells master… then master… he… he… aunt not there, shopping… he locks me with him and Duddley… he teaches Duddley about girls… tears my clothes… master pinches nubs… spreads my legs, shows him clit… stomps on clit… tells me to beg… I am not worthy enough for anything… slaps me… Master, I am sorry, I will do anything, please let me go… squeezes my hand… hurts master… master hurts… Duddley fails test… beats me when aunt is out… Master is drunk and kicks me… my rib breaks… I am crying…. Master please let go… I am sorry… it hurts… I will be good… please master… please leave me… please…"

Hedwig flew over and landed on the girls shoulder. She could not take it anymore. Her human, her caring human, her dearest, her child! How she wished she could have plucked those males' eyes out when she had the chance. Oh poor soul, tortured so much. No wonder she could not let her owl go; she had so little to call hers that she loved what she had with a passion unmatched anywhere. Hedwig's heart tore with grief for her beloved human, a being selfless enough to give all of herself to save her, that she cried. She cried for the being who was her friend, her child, her owner, her savior, the one she cared for, the one who listened to her, the one who took her advice, the one who was her mutual company. Nefira gasped when she saw the snowy phoenix cry and her precious tears falling on Jocelyn and getting absorbed. She understood what had to be done and laid a panting Jocelyn in her lap. A few more tears fell, one by one on and into Jocelyn.

 _Oh my dear child! Such dreadful past with such evil beings. Cry it out child, you are surrounded by ones who care for you, so cry it all out. Cry all the pain you hid in you. Cry them out of your system, and you will come out of this stronger. Know that I am with you, will always be with you and never will you have to go through such pain again._

Jocelyn finally snapped out of her past. She hugged the phoenix to her heart and cried. And cried. And cried. The girls let her cry, for they knew that Jocelyn would have to shed all her tears before she could move on with her life. Storing this much pain in anyone's heart was not good. It took some time, it took a lot of soothing and comforting and reassuring, but slowly Jocelyn quieted down. It was all silent for a few minutes. Finally Jocelyn broke the silence.

"Why are you all still here?"

"Why wouldn't we be Joy? A friend doesn't leave a friend's side, and you are one of our best friend. Trust us Joy, we will not leave you."

"I do not deserve you…"

Hedwig trilled angrily and bit her ear. "Ouch! Sorry sorry, I will behave." The other girls laughed. Hedwig trilled again and Jocelyn looked shocked.

"Please Hedwig no more. I cannot…" Hedwig trilled again.

"It is my life and I don't need everyone to know about it." Another trill.

"I don't know, I…" _trill… "_ I cannot do…" _trill…_ "I will, okay, I will." Jocelyn then turned towards the group with a fierce look, "Do you want to hear more of my pathetic life?"

Luna smiled at her and stoked her arm, "Hedwig is right, Joy, unless you let go of the burden, you will not be able to heal. I want you healed and always smiling, don't you?"

Jocelyn looked at her for a while before she sighed and nodded. Daphne spoke up for all, "We would like to hear what you went through, Joy."

Jocelyn then started her tale from her receiving her Hogwarts letter. During all the tale, the friends sat without moving, completely entranced by her adventures, and yet disgusted by the way many people treated her. Finally when Jocelyn stopped at the farewell to Amictos, they came out of their daze.

"Wow, you could write a book and be remembered for eternity, you know." Nefira fanned herself, "Despite the horrid start to your life and backstabbing people all around, you made a good person out of yourself."

"So you six have been friends since she was twelve years old, huh?" Folana asked Daphne, who nodded, "Yes, at first, I just supported her during her trying days and from insulting people, because, come one… it is hard to believe a girl, who is so soft hearted that she never speaks back even if you insult her to her face, would suddenly become the heir of slytherin and start petrifying people she never had a contact with. We formed our group during those days, and then stuck together. I still cannot believe that Ron and Hermione would blame her and distance away from her, after being friends for a whole year long."

Luna patted her shoulder, "There there Daphne, Weasley is an idiot and Granger is a bookworm, you cannot expect anything better from them."

Daphne laughed at that statement, but was shushed by Nefira immediately. She pointed out towards Jocelyn, who was curled around Hedwig, both fast asleep. They all smiled at each other and settled in their beddings, each fast asleep soon after. That day, none of those six girls attended any classes.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **So what do you think?**

 **Coming up: The romantic feelings start emerging and there is trouble at Hogwarts...**


	23. Impressions

When Jocelyn awoke that evening, she felt lighter. Her heart rejoiced the fact that she was still surrounded by the five girls and one phoenix. None had left her, not even her friends from Hogwarts. She let that happiness seep into her and energize her emotions. She was away from her horrid relatives and would never be there again. She was rid of them, and if they come across her anytime again, she would be powerful enough to make them cower. She had friends, true friends, and she had nothing hidden from them anymore. They remained by her side, which should mean something right? Maybe she was not as hopeless a case as she was led to believe.

Hedwig crooned by her heart as she awoke too, and she felt happy to feel a light-hearted Jocelyn petting her with love. She felt happy that the last night's talk was a success. If those pain filled moments could make Jocelyn walk with her head higher and heart stronger, then they were worth it. Slowly, the others woke too and were served a meal fitting for the queens by Dobby. Once done with that, Luna and Daphne bid farewell.

"Well, the humans might not miss us, but we do have a meeting with the merpeople tomorrow. We will let you know how that goes. Goodbye Joy, and don't you ever keep any burden from us ever again. Understood?"

Serine and Folana too took their leave, bidding farewell till the next day. Nefira stayed behind for one last talk. She felt that she should give Joy something else to think about when alone.

"So, Joy, forget about the past. I want an answer from you regarding your present."

"Umm yes?"

"We have four boys in our group. Can you tell me what you think about them?"

"What kind of question is that?" Joy asked in confusion.

"Oh, just humor me. I want to know. Let's start with Hothar."

Joy shrugged, "Okay, Hothar is a cute boy. As much as he tries to replicate the senior goblins, he is still a youngster and it shows in his passion and enthusiasm for things. He is protective and brave, and dead clever in his deductions. The best things about him is, just like all goblins I have met till now, that he does not lie or fabricate. When you are with him, you can be assured that you are with a truthful person, who would not betray you behind your back."

Nefira nodded, "Okay, now Segrace?"

"Grace is majestic; I mean you get the feeling of wisdom and power from him. He is calm, collected and mysterious. He is dead loyal and very passionate with his interests. He loves and cares with all his heart and he is a warrior. He is a bright student too, and an excellent tutor."

"Alano next!"

"Alano is graceful. The way he carries himself and speaks is like royalty. He usually prefers not to get into debates or fights, but he is a good influencing speaker. He has a golden heart and is a very good judge of character. He has a calming presence. He does not open up to people easily, but if he does, you can be assured that he cares about you very much."

"Finally, Saelig!"

Jocelyn chuckled at her enthusiasm for her fellow elf, "Saelig is fun. He laughs, plays and one never gets bored with him. He is very easy to get along with. But he is also fiercely loyal and a person who jumps into any fight for something he believes in. He is a genius in studies, and a good friend. One will never notice it beneath his joyous personality, but he is very shrewd and cunning, and you will never know when you are spilling your secrets to him."

Nefira nodded, pleased. Jocelyn had to ask her, "Why Nefi? Why did you ask me that?"

"Well, you saw that your girlfriends care about you, right?" Jocelyn nodded. "Now think about what you told about the boys. Do you think that they don't like you? That they would even pretend to be friends with you just because? Never doubt your friends Joy, for that is one thing about you. You don't trust people easily, but once you do you can be assured that you will definitely earn theirs."

Jocelyn shook her head, "You can't be sure of that. Ron and Hermione surely did not trust me."

"Did you?" Nefira countered, "You had just entered the wizarding world and these two were people who stuck to you, one due to your fame and other because she had no one else back then. Did you open to them like you did with us? Forget that, that should come later… Did you even be as carefree with them as you are with us?" Jocelyn could not refute her argument, for she was true. Nefira did not pause.

"That is not the point I am trying to make here. I am telling you that the friends you have here, let them stand by you and be your support as much as you are to us."

"Don't kid Nefira," Jocelyn pouted, "I do nothing of that sort. You people look after me, and nothing more. You can go on happily without me, that is false the other way around."

"Jocelyn, you stand with us, listen to us, and don't judge us for anything. You care for us Jocelyn, and that is more than enough for us to care for you in return. You mean a lot to us… no that's not right, all of us in our mismatched group care for each other, and that what makes us a close-knit group."

"Okay… I understand."

"That's all I wanted to tell you. It really saddens them to see you flinching at the slightest touch…. Especially now that those three fancy you…." Nefira mumbled the last part, Jocelyn caught onto it.

"Excuse me!" Jocelyn squeaked.

"Nothing nothing…. Get some rest. I'll see you later." Nefira rushed away, leaving a confused and slightly panicked Jocelyn behind. Well, that was her goal anyway, so no worries.

It was Friday, and none of the girls had made it to the morning class that day. So, When Alano saw Nefira, Folana and Serine arrive for astronomy that night, he was eager to set his sight on Jocelyn once again. But the class started and there was no trace of the human. He and Saelig exchanged similar worried looks with each other before they looked at the girls. The girls were, surprisingly, giggling among themselves and whispering while they worked. Nefira caught his eyes and smiled at him, shaking her head as if to say nothing is wrong. Unaware that they were doing it, both Saelig and Alano pointed at Jocelyn's seat and raised their eyebrows simultaneously, questioning Jocelyn's presence. The girls broke into giggles at them once again and went back into their huddle of whispers. Both boys sighed in confusion at the same time too.

Segrace uncurled his wings and stretched them out as he sat up, just awake from his sleep. After doing a few stretches, he freshened up for his morning exercises. So, he was pleased to see her coming towards his cottage as soon as he opened his door. She was dressed in human attire of a t-shirt and stretch pants, and she looked lovely with that shy smile on her face. His eyes traced her silky black hair, her smiling green eyes, her cute button nose, her cheeks flushed from the morning cold and her inviting lips. When she came near him, she looked at him in the eyes and he was bowled over with the affection he could see in those green depths, and at that moment he wished. He wished to all the stars in the sky that she would look at him like this for the rest of his life. He wished he could start every day with her love.

Wait! Love?

He immediately snapped himself out of his daze and saw the inquiring look from the girl.

"Ummm… Grace? Are you okay?"

"Yes, I am. Good morning. Excuse me, I was just lost in some thought."

"Hmmm, the look on your face did say that it was a pretty thought. Care to share?" She teased.

Segrace smiled at her, "yes it was and no, that was mía pensamiento…. My thought." Then he asked carefully, "How are you, Joy? Really?"

Jocelyn smiled at him, "I am good, better, on the improvement… It took talking to the girls to show me that I was not alone and that I had friends. I thought over it yesterday and decided that I need to give my part into our friendship too. I am sorry if I have ever offended you with my closed personality, but no more… I have been given a chance to a wonderful life and I am not going to let my past ruin it."

"Well that's good to hear. So what part of our friendship are you giving me this morning?"

Jocelyn smiled hesitantly, "Can I come with you to work out in the morning?"

Segrace raised an eyebrow, "You do know that I do it along with Alano and Saelig, right? There is the fairy, by the way." Jocelyn turned around and waved at the fairy, who stopped in his tracks when he saw her. Then he smiled brightly at her and flew over to them. Jocelyn greeted him as soon as he landed, "Good morning Hasan. Can I come with you to work out in the morning?"

Alano was still coming out of his pleasant surprise, "Sure?" He looked questioningly at Segrace, who just smiled back at him with a shrug. Jocelyn meanwhile was looking at the fourth cottage in their area, "Will Saelig join you guys at your spot?"

"Well he would, but you do remember that we had astronomy yesterday, right?"

Jocelyn slapped her forehead, "Oh right, sorry. But he does work out every day, right?"

Alano nodded, still surprised with the new openness he saw in his friend today. He liked that she was more comfortable with them today. Maybe the 'girls day over' did something to her. He liked it even more when she looked at the both mischievously, "Let's wake him. No one is going to be sleeping in today." She rushed off to the elf's cottage while the two boys followed sedately behind her.

"She looks good when happy, doesn't she?" Segrace asked Alano causally. Alano hummed in agreement, "Yes, and her good mood just spreads around. I wish I could have that every day."

Segrace looked at him questioningly, but Alano shook his head meaning 'not now'. Both boys understood how she affected them, and they knew too that the other was aware of their feelings. They walked beside Jocelyn who was knocking at the door.

"Come on Sael! Did you wish the stars for a long long sleep? Open up!"

When the door finally opened, the elf that greeted them had messed blue hair standing on its ends, droopy slanted blue eyes trying hard to remain open and stumbling feet barely keeping him standing. Three people laughing at him made him finally open his eyes.

"What?" he asked as another yawn conquered him.

"Let's go for our morning exercise, Sael. Go and freshen up really quick."

Saelig was still sleepy, "Our…?" _yawn_ "Wait… Joy?" He opened his eyes wide, "Joy! Good morning. What… what's going on?"

Alano decided to put him out of his misery, "Joy has decided to join us in our morning routines and has determined that you would not remain asleep today morning."

However much Saelig tried to protest, Jocelyn did not relent, and he was finally dragged out to their clearing where the boys usually did their exercise. Jocelyn's eyes were wide with amazement.

"Wow, this place is so secluded and yet so open. Do you meet here every morning?"

The boys nodded, and then all three of them looked at each other awkwardly. They had a new member among them, and they did not know how to proceed. Usually, they would just arrive, greet those present and go on with their routine. Jocelyn did not notice their hesitance, but then again, she did not need to as she was looking for her own bubble of privacy.

"Ummm…" she turned to them, "Do any of you work out at that spot?" She pointed over to the edge of the clearing, where there were sparsely placed trees and plain grass. When she saw the boys shake their heads, she nodded shyly and went to that spot. Unaware of the boys were still watching her, she was now in her own bubble, where all she thought about was her own magic and body. She removed her limiting chain and closed her eyes, feeling her magic wash over her as if it was happy greeting her. She let it flow all over her, unconsciously noting all of her body and healing wherever necessary. Then she fell into the routine that was taught by Imparato Zeilo. The boys shook their heads as they watched her move flawlessly, super aware of herself and nothing else, and finally went into their own routines.

Once completed with the physical part, Jocelyn then sat down and let her magic free to mingle with her surroundings. Her magic was with the nature and yet connected to her. Headmaster Grendall had taught her that, how to let her magic be controlled yet outside her grasp. He told her that her magic had not got the chance to be free when it was bound, and so she had not developed a medium with her magic. Given how strong and boundless her magic was now, it was even imperative for her to communicate with it, else she would not be able to control the magic when under high emotions or how much to put in a spell. She was not there yet; till now she had learned to let her magic go free but was not yet able to read what it was telling or direct it what to do. It was like her magic had a mind of her own; it healed her, it performed tasks not even known to her, and it protected her however it wished. Jocelyn had no control over it.

And so, Jocelyn did not know that her magic, once unbound had permeated everything around her including the three beings with her. Segrace was practicing his sword fighting, Alano was doing his pushups and Saelig was practicing his archery and his swordsmanship alternatively when all three of them felt a wave of energy. They could feel the energy as if it had feelings, and right now it was suspicious. They don't know what it tested in them, but they could feel the foreign magic run through them, in their body but not their own. When it was done, they felt a feeling of love and happiness, not belonging to them. Instinctively they all turned to look at Jocelyn, who was sitting cross legged on the grass and deep in meditation. There was an aura surrounding her, and they understood that it was her magic which they felt right now. This told one thing they already knew about her; she trusts anyone slowly, but once she does she would give them all her happiness. They felt touched that she trusted and liked them.

Once Jocelyn was done, she opened her eyes to a majestic view. Segrace, Alano and Saelig were all fighting with each other with their swords. There were no teams, each could attack any and they had to fight to win. She could see that Segrace was as efficient in using his wings as well as arms as weapons, Alano's wings helped him steer into usually impossible positions and that helped in attack as well as defense, and Saelig's speed made it easy to dodge as well as his next moves unpredictable. But beyond that, all three of them were proficient, graceful and…. Sensual. She blushed as she thought that, because try as she might, she could not help herself from flushing or her heart from its quick pulsing. She could see their muscles move, their fluid shifts and their intense concentration on their fight. For the first time in her life, though she did not know it, Jocelyn was aroused.

Once they were done, the three boys finally remembered their compeer and looked in her direction. Their she was sitting, with her knees bent to her chest and her hands around her legs, with a flushed face and with an admiring look on her face. She immediately began to clap. The three looked at each other, smirked and bowed to her as one. Jocelyn laughed bashfully and approached them, "That was outstanding. How long does it take to achieve such efficiency?"

Alano smiled at her, "I started when I was five, so…" he looked at the other two for confirmation, "… you can say ten years. I, at least, am not efficient yet. I still have lot to learn and master."

"Well, if that was not the best, then I look forward to how you will be in coming years. I wish someone taught me something too…" She trailed off, cursing that all she had learned when she was young was washing dishes, moping floor and cooking food. Segrace noticed her melancholy and proposed, "Well it is not late to start now. Who knows, you may beat us down once you are good enough too. But I think you have to contact the headmaster for a lighter sword."

"Why is that?"

"Well, you are not actually as strong as we are, so you will not be able to even lift the ones we have."

Jocelyn pouted, "Sure I can, if I practice well."

Alano laughed and forwarded his sword to her, "Go on then, give it a random swing."

Jocelyn took the sword and immediately stumbled under its weight. She tried, she really did, but was unable to lift the sword even an inch off the ground. She signaled Alano to take it back and then shook her head, "I guess I will be good at nothing."

"That is not true, Joy. I have seen masters take down swordsmen with just a dagger and nary a scratch on them. Your skill speaks in a fight, not the weapon. Segrace is right, if you can get a light sword, then you can handle that well. If you don't like that, there are other weapons too, like bows, maces, daggers, claws, maces and so on. No one is proficient at all weaponry, what you need to find out is what is most suitable to your physique and personality."

"Personality?"

"Of course. Let's say you are good with axes. I can see Hothar using them, but can you really see yourself putting all the force to chop someone's head off?"

Jocelyn shuddered as she imagined it and shook her head, "I understand. So, am I not suitable for swords?"

Segrace shook his head, "You are misunderstanding Joy. You can learn all of them but can master one or two. I for one believe that it takes a lifetime to master even one."

Thus, the discussion continued as they walked back to their cottages. Jocelyn invited them for breakfast, and did the same through Dobby with Serine, Folana Nefira and Hothar. All of them sat in garden, playing with Fawkes and Hedwig, when suddenly Fawkes sang a melodious trill and vanished in flames. This caught everyone's attention. He flashed back immediately, this time with Daphne. A hysterical Daphne, who immediately collapsed crying,

"Please somebody, anybody… help… they… those imbeciles…. just don't listen."

Jocelyn rushed to her friend, "Daphne! Please calm down. Please Daphne! Tell me what happened."

Fawkes had flashed away once more, and this time came back with Neville. He looked at Daphne and shook his head, "Come on Greengrass, panicking will not help you now. Calm down so we can plan out what to do."

Daphne whirled around to him, "This is my own sister in trouble Longbottom…" she spat at him, but Neville did not reciprocate with anger, "And my friend too. What are you achieving by panicking like this?" She turned her head away.

"Daphne," Neville hugged her, and she let him, sobbing on his shoulders, "Calm down silly girl, this won't solve anything. See even Fawkes thought you were better far away from there."

As she silently sobbed burrowed into him, Neville looked up sadly, "Sorry guys, we did not mean to interrupt. Fawkes suddenly appeared and whisked us away."

Folana shook her head and took the sobbing Daphne from him into her arms. She then sat down beside her and comforted her. With no weight in his arms anymore, Neville looked lost.

"What happened Nev?" Joy asked silently. She was hurting inside that her friends would call them appearing to her as interrupting and whatever else, but she knew this was not the time for that. She put on a brave face and looked at her friend.

"You already know that the lake people were revolting. In the second task, the contestants had not held back from hurting those folks. Minor injuries they were prepared for, in fact Dumbledore had apparently assured them that they were just playing a game. Those lake inhabitants had to scare and maybe hold up the contestants and had to let them go when they hit them with a spell or used other clever means. It was no way supposed to be violent and the merpeople agreed for the fun. But the headmaster had not told the same to the contestants, in fact, they were told that the hostages would die if not saved. So, they held nothing back and fired the most dangerous ones they knew. The result was heavy injuries and even the death of two Grindylows. They were so angry, Joy, they even captured Fleur, but the giant squid had told them immediately not to hurt the children for adults' mistakes. As soon as the competition was over, the lake was immediately called out of bounds, and they restricted everybody form it."

"That was what Luna was here for, to learn to talk to the merpeople…." Joy said. Neville nodded.

"Yes. She was successful and the merpeople told her all this. Daphne went with her too."

"Did they agree to let the humans in again?"

"They did if we agree to a few conditions. They wanted full sovereignty over the lake. It was their home and theirs to control. Did you know that Hogwarts controlled the creatures allowed into the lake? It did not exist initially, but came later through wards and perimeters." Neville shook his head, "The second requirement was full rights over whoever trespassed their lake, to punish or to release. They also wanted wards setup so that anyone who did not how to communicate with them to not come near them, or come at their own risk."

"These are reasonable conditions, aren't they?"

Neville raised his hands in the air and dragged it over his face, showing his irritation, "Of course they are. It is the Ministries that are not. The ministries governing all three schools got involved as soon as Luna and Daphne went to convey their message to the Headmaster. I don't even know how they got the news of the communication. And all the three ministers are IDIOTS. They made big news out of it, then dragged Luna and Daphne to the merfolk between students and media and ministry personal." Neville's voice raised in volume, "Daphne protested you know… she was completely against the idea. But neither the headmasters nor the ministers paid any heed. Finally, they threatened expulsion. So, there were Students, ministry, teachers and media all congregated around the two girls. Luna did not speak, she just stood there, and three pairs of mermaids and mermen came out of the water. I guess they communicated, the merpeople were nodding… and then the headmaster had to step in to show his might. He too can communicate with the merpeople, I wonder if he ever did. If he was so talented, why did he not do it before? He talked with them a bit, but the merpeople did not seem happy with him. Then he turned around and asked the Minister about their demands. You know simple ones…. Just complete control over the lake and restricted access to it from the humans."

We nodded. He was angry, we could see that.

"And the minister, that pompous idiot, was airing that the lake was their property and that the merfolk should be thankful that they were allowed and punished for encroaching on it. The aurors were stupid enough to start firing curses at them. This enraged the merpeople and they started dragging Luna and Daphne into the lake. Astoria was watching nearby; she panicked and ran to them. She succeeded in thrusting Daphne out of their grip, but the merfolk took her instead. And the lake now is dangerous to go near to. If you even go near it, some being or the other will attack you."

Joy squeezed his shoulder gently and knelt beside Daphne, "Daphne, you will not get your sister back by crying about it. You need to fight for your sister and then for whatever you think is right. You…"

"A fighter!" Alano exclaimed behind her. He immediately came to the sobbing girl, "When Luna went to the merfolk here, a seer among them came to visit us. She said to Luna that she needs to take a fighter along with her, else she will not succeed. I think that's what Luna did, Daphne. She is a seer too, she knew that you are the only one who can lead the fight to calm the merfolk. You need to stop crying and think about what needs to be done."

Daphne calmed down listening to her friends and she nodded to them, "you are right, I will get my friend and sister back." She looked up at everybody and her eyes shone with determination, "Thank you." She said and looked at Fawkes, who flashed her back to her school. Neville too thanked them and flashed away. Everyone talked a bit about this new development before leaving for their day's works.


End file.
